Page "Joan Crawford" Paragraph 11

As Lucille LeSueur, her first film was The Circle in 1925, followed by Pretty Ladies, starring ZaSu Pitts.

Also in 1925 she appeared in small roles in the films The Only Thing and Old Clothes.

MGM publicity head Pete Smith recognized her ability but felt that her name sounded fake ; it also, he told studio head Louis B. Mayer, sounded like " Le Sewer ".

Smith organized a contest in conjunction with the fan magazine Movie Weekly to allow readers to select her new name.

Initially the name " Joan Arden " was selected but, when another actress was found to have prior claim to that name, the alternate name " Crawford " became the choice.

Crawford initially wanted her new first name to be pronounced " Jo-anne ".

She hated the name Crawford, saying it sounded like " crawfish ".

Her friend, actor William Haines, quipped, " They might have called you ' Cranberry ' and served you every Thanksgiving with the turkey!

" Crawford continued to dislike the name throughout her life but, she said, she " liked the security that went with it ".