Richard Jose | |
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Background information | |
Born | June 5, 1862 |
Died | October 20, 1941 | (aged 79)
Occupation(s) | Singer |
Richard J. Jose (June 5, 1862 – October 20, 1941) was an American countertenor, popular during the early 20th century.[1][2]
Richard Jose was born in Lanner, Cornwall in 1862. Following the death of his father in 1876, he immigrated to Nevada in search of his uncle.[1] He sang in saloons for charity, and in 1881 with Thatcher's Minstrels.[3] In 1884, he joined a minstrel troupe in California, and later appeared in New York City. In 1896, Jose married Therese Shreve.[4]
In 1887, he won a gold medal from the Academy of Music (New York City).[3] He made phonograph cylinders as early as 1892 for the New England branch of the North American Phonograph Company. Between October 27, 1903 and 1906, he recorded for the Victor Talking Machine Company, and his version of "Silver Threads Among the Gold" was a hit. In 1905 and 1906, he toured with his own minstrel show, and in 1906, was injured when a stage curtain fell on him.[5]
In 1915, Jose sang the song "Silver Threads Among the Gold" in a silent short movie of the same name, by Pierce Kingsley and R. R. Roberts.[6] After retiring from entertainment, Jose became the California Deputy Real Estate Commissioner.
Jose, pronounced /z/ like "rose," is a Cornish name. He added an accent, eɪ as in José.