Bob Dylan fans finally learn how he got his stage name after 63 years

Bob Dylan has been making music for decades, but some fans will be shocked to learn he was born under a completely different name.

Robert Allen Zimmerman was born on May 24, 1941, and knew from a young age he wanted to be a singer. He was a huge fan of Matt Dillon, the sheriff on the TV western Gunsmoke, in his teenage years and it's this that inspired his future stage name.

In 1958, the singer revealed to his high school sweetheart that he intended to devote his life to music and assume the name Bob Dillon.

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Bob also told new friends that Dillon was his mom's maiden name, even though this was a lie and her name had been Stone. He eventually changed the spelling for stylistic reasons.

Fans have been speculating about the origin of Bob's name for years. One person wrote on X, "American folk singer, Robert Zimmerman, changed his name to Bob Dylan. It’s often suggested he was inspired by Dylan Thomas, but he denied this."

The fan added, "He was, however, a great fan of Matt Dillon, the sheriff in the TV series Gunsmoke who first used the name, Bob Dillon."

"Really hoping this is true," one person replied, while someone else added, "Just learned that in the first draft of his transformation from Robert Zimmerman to Bob Dylan, he was occasionally known as Bob Dillon (as in Matt Dillon, the sheriff on “Gunsmoke”). Can’t make this stuff up."

Another fan shared, "Even his name. “Dylan” doesn’t come from the Welsh Poet, but Matt Dillon, a character in the 50s TV/radio Western series Gunsmoke. Bob used to spell it Dillon, but changed it because he thought the Welsh Poet’s version was more common. A deep Americana; not an angry young poet."

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Bob Dylan has released a number of hit songs over the years, and fans have often argued over which one is the best.

However, it's one of the singer's more recent tracks that people are finally agreeing is his "greatest masterpiece."

One person posted on X, "Murder Most Foul blows me away more and more as time passes. Absolutely insane to release what might be your greatest masterpiece in your late 70s. like for me it's joined the canon of great American art."

Murder Most Foul has a lengthy run time of 16 minutes and 56 seconds. Other fans have been praising the song, with one person posting, "If I'm in the right mood it brings me to tears."

A third fan said, "It is the most zen piece of rock music ever created. I listen to it while I meditate and it's a perfect companion."