What Was Raquel Welch’s Real Name?
Raquel Welch took the entertainment industry by storm when she starred in the 1966 movie One Million Years B.C. Her star continued to rise as she took on more roles and wowed audiences across the globe. What was Welch’s real name? Here’s what we know.
Raquel Welch’s real name
Welch’s real name was Jo Raquel Tejada. She was born in Chicago, Illinois on September 5, 1940. Welch’s father, Armando Carlos Tejada Urquizo, was an aeronautical engineer from Bolivia and her mother, Josephine Hall, was of English descent.
Welch married her high school sweetheart, James Welch, in 1959. They had two children named Damon and Tahnee. Welch and her first husband divorced in 1964, but she kept her married name. She went on to marry three more times after their relationship ended.
A studio wanted Raquel Welch to change her first name because it sounded ‘ethnic’
After a screen test for the 1966 film Our Man Flint, 20th Century Fox reportedly suggested that Welch change her first name to Debbie. The studio thought the name Raquel was “too ethnic,” reports The Los Angeles Times. However, Welch wanted to keep her first name, so she rejected the suggestion. “I’m proud of my Bolivian heritage,” Welch once told the publication. (Here’s a look at Stevie Nicks’ real name.)
Raquel Welch embraced her heritage late in her career
Welch later took acting roles that highlighted her heritage. In 2017, she starred in the film How to Be a Latin Lover. From 2002 to 2004, she appeared in the PBS series American Family, which told the story of a Mexican-American family trying to make ends meet while living in Los Angeles. Welch played the role of Aunt Dora.
A 2002 article in The New York Times discussed how Welch delayed publicly acknowledging her heritage until very late in her career. The article notes how some audiences might be confused when they see Welch playing Dora, who is a Latina character.
“Dora, you see, is a Latina, a title Ms. Welch herself is claiming for the first time after nearly 40 years in show business,” says The New York Times review. She was discouraged from emphasizing her heritage because of concern she might be rejected for certain movie roles.
According to the publication, Welch not only faced pressure to conceal her true identity when she was in front of the camera but also at home. Her father reportedly “tried to assimilate at all costs” and didn’t allow his family to speak Spanish at home.
“It was told to me that if I wanted to be typecast, I would play into [my Hispanic heritage],” Welch told The Times. “You just couldn’t be too different.”
Welch continued, “My first big breakthrough part in One Million Years B.C. they died my hair blond. It’s a marketing thing. And now I’m sure there are a lot of people who are marketing specialists just for the Latino community. They want those 35 million people to buy their products and to vote for them.”
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