There is a Bloomington man who wants to legally change his first name to “Corona.” And it has nothing to do with the coronavirus.
It’s a long story, but here’s the short version.
As a younger man, Steve Harrison lived in Mexico. One day, he says he was asked to appear in a TV commercial for Corona beer. He says he wore a white linen suit and a white Panama hat. It was a non-speaking part in an ad that aired in Mexico and possibly in the U.S., too, he said.
When he came back to the U.S., he’d drink Corona whenever he was at the bar. People started referring to him as “That Corona Guy.” Eventually, he just became “Corona.”
Harrison, now 69, has spent 30 years as Corona. He says that's what his kids call him. So earlier this month, Harrison filed the paperwork in McLean County court to legally change his name to “Corona Steve Harrison.” He ran the appropriate legal notice.
Why now? Well, he’s about to get married—he has two girlfriends, he said—and is winding down his career in home improvement. He really only uses “Steve” for business stuff.
“To me, it made sense to legalize it,” he said.
Harrison has endured a little bit of Facebook teasing about his name ever since the pandemic started. A friend recently was trying to get his attention at the store and luckily caught himself before shouting “Corona!” and giving people a good scare.
“People think what they want. I don’t care,” Harrison said.
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