Richard José | |
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| Born | June 5, 1862 |
| Died | October 20, 1941 (aged 79) |
| Occupation | Singer |
Richard J. José (June 5, 1862 – October 20, 1941) was an English-born American countertenor (contextually a very high tenor), popular during the early 20th century.
Richard Jose was born in Lanner, Cornwall in England in 1862. Following the death of his father in 1876, he emigrated to Nevada in search of his uncle. He sang in saloons for charity, and in 1881 with Thatcher's Minstrels. In 1884, he joined a minstrel troupe in California, and later appeared in New York City. In 1896, Jose married Therese Shreve.
In 1887, he won a gold medal from the Academy of Music (New York City). He made cylinder recordss as early as 1892 for the New England Phonograph Company, a sub-company of the North American Phonograph Company based in New England. From 1902 to 1906, he recorded for the Victor Talking Machine Company, and his version of "Silver Threads Among the Gold" was a best-seller. In 1905 and 1906, he toured with his own minstrel show, and in 1906, was injured when a stage curtain fell on him.
In 1915, Jose was seen performing "Silver Threads Among the Gold" in a short silent movie of the same name, by Pierce Kingsley and R. R. Roberts. After retiring from entertainment, Jose became the Deputy Real Estate Commissioner for the state of California.
Jose, pronounced /z/ like "rose," is a Cornish name. He added an accent, eɪ as in José.
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