The first part is real, anyway.

Popular stand-up comic Louis C.K.'s real name is Louis Szekely, which is a Hungarian name (his father is said to be of Hungarian and Mexican origin).

He reportedly wanted to take pity on the many people who had trouble pronouncing it and so tried to make it easier on them -- C.K. is an approximation of the proper pronunciation, which is more like "see-kay."

It would also, of course, make it harder on a struggling young comedian to have a name that promoters and announcers can't even say.

Fortunately, this isn't a problem for C.K. anymore. He's a household name now, at least in the comedy world, but increasingly so in the entertainment biz as a whole.

He's written for a number of comedy shows -- most notably "Late Show With David Letterman," "Late Night With Conan O'Brien" and "Saturday Night Live" -- and has written and starred in two sitcoms of his own, "Lucky Louie" and the even more creatively named "Louie."

He's currently working on a new sitcom with fellow former "Letterman" writer Spike Feresten, which CBS has ordered to pilot.

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