What was George Burns original name? What is George Burns real name? What religion was George Burns?

George Burns was born Nathan Birnbaum on January 20, 1896, in New York, New York, United States of America. Although he was not a practicing Jew, Burns never formally changed his name from Nathan Birnbaum.

In fact, his Catholic wife Gracie Allen and all of his friends called him “Natty”; Gracie called him “George” only when they were acting. Burns was Jewish inside, but it stopped at his skin because he couldn’t be too Jewish.

George Burns and other Jewish show business friends had to join the Hillcrest Country Club because the others barred Jews. Burns was representative of a moment in Jewish life — in the 1920s, ‘30s and ‘40s — when Jews were torn between being Jewish and becoming American.

George Burns died on March 9, 1996, in Beverly Hills, California, United States of America. His funeral was held three days later at the Wee Kirk o’ the Heather church in Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery, Glendale.

For his role in the 1975 film The Sunshine Boys, George Burns won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Burns was only a Tony Award shy of being one of the few EGOT award recipients in the American entertainment industry.