Few famous children have had to rewrite their own story as publicly as Chaz Bono; born Chastity Sun Bono in 1969 (Encyclopaedia Britannica), he grew up on a 1970s variety stage, later identified as a lesbian, and eventually became one of the most visible transgender men in the U.S. Now multiple reports place him at the center of a March 2026 wedding to Shara Blue Mathes — a moment that reads less like a news flash and more like the latest chapter in a very long, very public coming into himself.
Age (as of 2026): 57 ·
Born: March 4, 1969 (Encyclopaedia Britannica) ·
Parents: Cher and Sonny Bono (Encyclopaedia Britannica) ·
Spouse: Shara Blue Mathes (USA Today (entertainment news))
Quick snapshot
- Born Chastity Sun Bono on March 4, 1969 (Encyclopaedia Britannica)
- Parents are Cher and Sonny Bono (Encyclopaedia Britannica)
- Public gender transition began in 2008 (Encyclopaedia Britannica)
- How close Chaz and Elijah are in private — the public record includes no detailed reporting (PinkNews (LGBTQ+ outlet))
- Cher’s exact “greatest love” framing is self-reported, not a documented record (Encyclopaedia Britannica)
- Whether Chaz plans to have children — no confirmed public statement (USA Today (entertainment news))
- 1969: Born in Los Angeles (Encyclopaedia Britannica)
- 1995: Publicly identified as a lesbian (Wikipedia (user-edited encyclopedia))
- 2008: Public transition began (Encyclopaedia Britannica)
- 2026: Wedding reported in Los Angeles (USA Today (entertainment news))
- Ongoing public life as an actor, author, and advocate (Encyclopaedia Britannica)
- Post-wedding family milestones remain private (USA Today (entertainment news))
- Media attention on Cher and the Bono family continues (USA Today (entertainment news))
Eight facts, one throughline: the legal and public record follows Chaz Bono’s choices, from birth certificate to wedding announcement.
| Label | Value | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Birth date | March 4, 1969 | Encyclopaedia Britannica |
| Birth name | Chastity Sun Bono | Encyclopaedia Britannica |
| Current name | Chaz Salvatore Bono | Encyclopaedia Britannica |
| Parents | Cher and Sonny Bono | Encyclopaedia Britannica |
| Spouse | Shara Blue Mathes | USA Today (entertainment news) |
| Public transition began | 2008 | Encyclopaedia Britannica |
| Legal name change completed | May 2010 | Wikipedia (user-edited encyclopedia) |
| Wedding date (reported) | March 8, 2026 | USA Today (entertainment news) |
Why did Chastity Bono become Chaz?
Early life as Chastity
- Born Chastity Sun Bono on March 4, 1969, in Los Angeles (Encyclopaedia Britannica)
- The child of Cher and Sonny Bono (Encyclopaedia Britannica)
- Appeared on “The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour” as a child (Wikipedia (user-edited encyclopedia))
Coming out and transition
- In 1995, Bono publicly identified as a lesbian in an interview with “The Advocate” (Wikipedia (user-edited encyclopedia))
- In 2008, Bono began a public gender transition (Encyclopaedia Britannica)
- His publicist confirmed the name Chaz Bono in June 2009 (Wikipedia (user-edited encyclopedia))
- In May 2010, Bono legally changed his name and gender documentation in California (Wikipedia (user-edited encyclopedia))
Impact of public transition
- The documentary “Becoming Chaz” premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival (Wikipedia (user-edited encyclopedia))
- Coverage described the film as Emmy-nominated (Union Leader (regional newspaper))
- Bono published the memoir “Transition: Becoming Who I Was Always Meant to Be” in 2012 (Wikipedia (user-edited encyclopedia))
- He appeared on “Dancing with the Stars” in 2011 (Wikipedia (user-edited encyclopedia))
The public record shows a transition that was neither impulsive nor hidden: it moved through interviews, legal paperwork, a documentary, and a mainstream TV dance floor in roughly four years.
The pattern: Bono did not treat visibility as a single announcement. Each step — the 1995 interview, the 2008 transition, the 2010 legal change — created its own public artifact.
Are Chaz and Elijah close?
Who is Elijah Blue Allman?
- Elijah Blue Allman is Chaz’s younger half-brother through their mother, Cher (Wikipedia (user-edited encyclopedia))
- His father is Gregg Allman, Cher’s second husband (Wikipedia (user-edited encyclopedia))
Chaz and Elijah’s relationship
- Both brothers have appeared in coverage of major family milestones, but the 2026 wedding reports center on Chaz and Cher, not on Elijah’s attendance (USA Today (entertainment news))
- Neither has given the kind of detailed interview that would let outsiders judge the relationship’s temperature (PinkNews (LGBTQ+ outlet))
Most of what fans think they know about the brothers’ closeness comes from single images or tabloid inference, not from either man’s own account.
What this means: The fact of the relationship is well documented; the emotional texture is not.
Did Cher go to Chaz’ wedding?
Chaz’s wedding to Shara Blue Mathes
- Bono and Mathes reportedly met as teenagers at the Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute (USA Today (entertainment news))
- They reconnected as adults and began their relationship in 2017, according to multiple entertainment reports (PinkNews (LGBTQ+ outlet))
- Reports describe the relationship as lasting roughly nine years before the wedding (PinkNews (LGBTQ+ outlet))
- Multiple reports place the wedding on March 8, 2026, at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel in Los Angeles (USA Today (entertainment news))
- The dress code was described as Hollywood Glam Formal (Union Leader (regional newspaper))
Cher’s attendance and reaction
- Cher reportedly attended the 2026 wedding (USA Today (entertainment news))
- InStyle (celebrity-lifestyle outlet) reported that Cher was present and gained a daughter-in-law
- Entertainment coverage framed the ceremony as a full-circle family moment (PinkNews (LGBTQ+ outlet))
If Cher’s reported presence is accurate, it closes a storyline that has followed the family since Chaz’s public transition began.
The trade-off: The wedding details are based on secondary entertainment reporting, not a primary legal record or a first-person family statement.
Who was Cher’s greatest love?
Cher and Sonny Bono
- Sonny Bono was Chaz’s father, Cher’s first husband, and her musical partner on “The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour” (Encyclopaedia Britannica)
- Sonny Bono died in 1998 from injuries sustained in a skiing accident (Encyclopaedia Britannica)
- Chaz’s middle name, Salvatore, was reportedly chosen in honor of Sonny (Encyclopaedia Britannica)
Cher’s later relationships
- Cher went on to marry Gregg Allman, making the Allman family part of Chaz’s extended story (Wikipedia (user-edited encyclopedia))
- Public profiles continue to frame Sonny as the person Cher first shared fame with, which makes the love-of-her-life question inseparable from her onstage origin story (Encyclopaedia Britannica)
Cher’s public relationships happened under an intense spotlight, but the only one that produced a public child with a lasting pop-culture surname is the one with Sonny.
Why this matters: Cher’s own framing of Sonny as her great love, repeated in interviews over the years, is a self-report — but the historical record of their partnership is not.
Can Chaz Bono have a baby?
What the public record shows
- No confirmed reporting reviewed for this article indicates that Bono has biological children (USA Today (entertainment news))
- The 2026 wedding coverage focuses on the ceremony and the family reunion, with no mention of an existing child (PinkNews (LGBTQ+ outlet))
- Bono has not publicly detailed fatherhood plans in the coverage reviewed for this article (Wikipedia (user-edited encyclopedia))
Why “can he” is the wrong question
- Fertility after transition depends on individual medical history, access to care, and personal choice — not on a single public biography
- The honest answer, from the evidence available, is that Chaz Bono has not turned his private medical reality into a public fact sheet
Anyone who needs a definitive yes or no will be disappointed, because the definitive record doesn’t exist in the sources a journalist can responsibly cite.
The pattern: This question reveals more about modern celebrity curiosity than it does about Bono’s life.
Chaz Bono: A timeline of public milestones
Four dates tell the story; each one required a public act of some kind.
| Year | Milestone | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| 1969 | Born Chastity Sun Bono | Encyclopaedia Britannica |
| 1990s | Publicly identified as a lesbian in The Advocate | Wikipedia (user-edited encyclopedia) |
| 2008 | Began public gender transition | Encyclopaedia Britannica |
| 2026 | Married Shara Blue Mathes in a reported ceremony in Los Angeles | USA Today (entertainment news) |
What this means: The gap between 1969 and 2026 is the story: from a child assigned a name at birth to an adult who chose his own name and married under it.
Confirmed facts vs. open questions
Confirmed
- Born Chastity Sun Bono, March 4, 1969 (Encyclopaedia Britannica)
- Parents are Cher and Sonny Bono (Encyclopaedia Britannica)
- Public transition began in 2008 (Encyclopaedia Britannica)
- Father Sonny Bono died in 1998 (Encyclopaedia Britannica)
Reported or unresolved
- Wedding date and location rest on secondary entertainment reports (USA Today (entertainment news))
- Cher’s attendance is reported, not confirmed by Cher or Chaz directly (USA Today (entertainment news))
- Relationship timeline with Shara Blue Mathes comes from entertainment coverage (PinkNews (LGBTQ+ outlet))
- Chaz and Elijah’s private closeness is not detailed in reliable reporting (PinkNews (LGBTQ+ outlet))
- Fatherhood plans are not publicly documented (USA Today (entertainment news))
The balance: The durable facts are the ones that come from institutional biography, not from wedding-day chatter.
In their own words
“Becoming who I was always meant to be”
— Chaz Bono, memoir title (2012)
“Sonny was the love of my life.”
— Cher, as reported in interviews
For the documented shape of that relationship, see Encyclopaedia Britannica (biographical reference).
The takeaway
Chaz Bono’s story has never been a single headline. The 2026 wedding to Shara Blue Mathes is a reported chapter in a longer public arc that began with a child named Chastity on a 1970s variety stage. For readers following the Bono family, the stakes are less about the ceremony and more about seeing a very public life continue on its own terms: Chaz, not Chastity, is the one marrying, and Cher is reportedly there to mark it. Chaz has rewritten the story on his own terms, and Cher’s reported presence at the wedding marks the latest chapter in that public arc.
Frequently asked questions
How old is Chaz Bono?
Chaz Bono was born March 4, 1969, which makes him 57 as of 2026 (Encyclopaedia Britannica).
Who is Chaz Bono married to?
He is married to Shara Blue Mathes; multiple reports place the wedding on March 8, 2026, at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel in Los Angeles (USA Today (entertainment news)).
When did Chaz Bono transition?
Bono began a public gender transition in 2008, and his publicist confirmed the name Chaz Bono in June 2009 (Encyclopaedia Britannica; Wikipedia (user-edited encyclopedia)).
Was Cher at the ceremony?
Cher reportedly attended the 2026 wedding, according to USA Today’s entertainment coverage (USA Today (entertainment news)).
Does Chaz Bono have children?
No confirmed reporting reviewed for this article indicates that Bono has biological children, and he has not publicly documented fatherhood plans (USA Today (entertainment news); Wikipedia (user-edited encyclopedia)).
The pattern: The FAQ answers maintain the same split: firm biographical facts, softer wedding details.
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Craig Newton is Senior Reporter at ScopePress.uk, covering breaking technology news and consumer tech stories across the UK.