Chaz Salvatore Bono, born Chastity Sun Bono on March 4, 1969, in Los Angeles, California, is an American writer, musician, and actor. As the only child of entertainment icons Sonny Bono and Cher, he grew up in the public eye, first appearing as a child alongside his parents on their hit television program The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour. That early exposure made him a familiar face to American audiences long before he would come to define his own identity and career on his own terms.

In 1995, several years after being outed as lesbian by the tabloid press, Bono publicly self-identified as a lesbian in a cover story for the leading American gay monthly magazine The Advocate. He went on to explore the coming-out experience in two books. Family Outing: A Guide to the Coming Out Process for Gays, Lesbians, and Their Families, published in 1998, included his own account of coming out, while his 2003 memoir, The End of Innocence, addressed his outing, his music career, and the death of his partner Joan from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Between 2008 and 2010, Bono sought out a gender transition. In a two-part CBS Entertainment Tonight feature broadcast in June 2009, he explained that his medical transition had begun a year earlier. In May 2010, he legally changed his identification to match his gender and name, becoming widely recognized as one of the most prominent transgender public figures in the United States. A documentary chronicling his experience, Becoming Chaz, premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival and later made its television debut on the Oprah Winfrey Network, bringing his story to a broad national audience.

Beyond his writing and advocacy, Bono has pursued careers in music and acting. He has also been married to Shara Blue Mathes. Through his books, documentary, and public appearances, he has remained a visible and influential voice in conversations about identity, family, and authenticity.