Jack W McMinn Jr.

Jack McMinn was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the son of an ironworker and a devoted mother. During the Great Depression, his family’s life changed dramatically when his father suffered a severe back injury at work and was forced onto disability. Seeking relief in a warmer climate, the family relocated to Alhambra, California. Tragically, his father later died from complications related to the injury when Jack was just 12 years old.

Determined to support her family, Jack’s mother went to work as a jewelry saleswoman for the Kingsbacher Jewelry Company and instilled in her son a strong work ethic and a love of learning. Jack excelled academically, maintaining straight A’s while also working as a chauffeur for Kingsbacher to help support the household. He balanced his studies with football and pursued his growing love of music, taking private voice lessons from William Bretts of the William Bretts Studio. A natural leader, he graduated as senior class vice president and valedictorian, earning a full Senatorial Scholarship to the University of Pittsburgh.

At the University of Pittsburgh, Jack followed a pre-medical track and ultimately majored in zoology. Music, however, remained central to his life. He joined the Glee Club, became a featured baritone soloist with the Heinz Chapel Choir, and performed regularly throughout his college years. He was also a member of the Sigma Xi fraternity and sang in a quartet featured on Duquesne Showtime, a weekly program on pioneering radio station KDKA. Recognizing his extraordinary talent, his voice teacher encouraged him to pursue a professional singing career and recommended renowned Manhattan teacher Daniele Serra.

After graduating in 1952 and completing two years of service in the U.S. Army Counter Intelligence Corps during the Korean War draft, Jack moved to New York City to study under Mr. Serra. His career flourished quickly. He performed at New York City Center in revivals of Wonderful Town, South Pacific, and Carousel, the latter of which toured to the 1958 World’s Fair in Brussels.

Jack went on to secure roles on Broadway, including a part in the original cast of Fiorello!, alongside Tom Bosley and Howard Da Silva. The production earned four Tony Awards and ran for two highly successful years. When it closed in 1961, Jack transitioned seamlessly into another landmark production, Camelot, performing with Julie Andrews, Richard Burton, Roddy McDowall, and a young Robert Goulet.

He continued his Broadway success as a member of the original cast of Mr. President, opening on October 20, 1962, opposite Nanette Fabray and Robert Ryan. The show ran for 265 performances and won three Tony Awards.

In 1964, Jack married and moved to a New Jersey suburb, where he raised a family. He commuted into the city to work as a salesman while continuing his lifelong devotion to music. From 1965 to 1975, he sang with the world-renowned Saint Thomas Choir of Men and Boys at St. Thomas Church on Fifth Avenue. He also performed in barbershop quartets as a member of S.P.E.B.S.Q.S.A. (now the Barbershop Harmony Society), sang at countless weddings and funerals, and appeared with groups including the Big Apple Chorus, the Roy Meyer Swingers, the Orpheus Club Men’s Chorus, and on WPAT radio broadcasts for more than a decade.

Jack remarried psychologist Constance Ann McMinn in 1989, and together they traveled the world until her untimely death in 2012. He subsequently joined his daughter Julie in San Diego and lived at The Villa on Bankers Hill for 13 years. There, he continued to share his voice with the St. Paul’s Cathedral Choir, the Scripps Ranch A Cappella Singers, and the Peninsula Singers, and frequently entertained fellow residents during musical activities at the Villa, much to everyone’s delight.

The joy music brought Jack was ever-present—whether through booming operatic arias upon his return from work or the harmonies of late-night quartet rehearsals. He often spoke of his Broadway years with such vividness that they remain alive in memory: a young singer from Pittsburgh, standing beneath the lights of the Great White Way, doing what he loved most.

Jack McMinn will be remembered for his resilience, generosity, discipline, and above all, for a voice that filled theaters, churches, and homes with music for a lifetime. He was predeceased by his beloved wife, Constance, and is survived by his daughter Julie of San Diego, California; his son John of Elmwood Park, New Jersey; and their mother, Mari McMinn-Omberg.