Johnny Mathis Biography

Johnny Mathis is an American singer of popular music who is best known for many songs. Some of these songs include “Winter Wonderland,” “Misty,” “O Holy Night,” “Silver Bells,” “It’s Not for Me to Say,” “We Need a Little Christmas,” and others.

Johnny Mathis Education

Mathis is an alumnus of George Washington High School in San Francisco. During his time there, he was a star athlete, hurdler, and high jumper. He also played basketball. There earned an athletic scholarship to attend San Francisco State College (San Francisco State University). He attended Francisco State College in the year 1954 with the intent to become a P.E. (Physical Education) teacher and an English teacher. Mathis still remains the top jump height in the college. He was only 7 cm (3 in) short of the 1952 Olympic record. Mathis graduated from the college in the year 2017 with an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree.

Johnny Mathis Age

Mathis is 87 years old as of 2022. He was born on September 30, 1935, in Gilmer, Texas, United States. He celebrates his birthday on the 30th of September every year.

Johnny Mathis Height

Mathis stands at an approximate height of 5 feet 7 inches (1.70 m).

Johnny Mathis Family

Johnny Mathis Parents

Mathis was born to Clem Mathis (father) and Mildred Boyd (mother). His parents are both domestic cooks. He is of African-American ethnicity. They relocated to San Francisco when Mathis was 5 years old, and they settled on 32nd Avenue in the Richmond District, where Mathis and his siblings were brought up.

Mathis’s dad Clem Mathis worked in vaudeville as a pianist and singer. He bought Mathis an old upright piano for $25 (US$385 in 2021 dollars) and encouraged his music, after seeing his talent. Mathis started to learn routines and songs from his dad. Mathis’s parents also ran his fan club.

Johnny Mathis Siblings

Mathis grew up alongside his 6 siblings, Clem L. Mathis, Jr., Elizabeth Mathis, Marguerite McMillian, Ralph Mathis, Linda Mathis, and Michael Mathis. He is the 4th born among his siblings.

Johnny Mathis Partner / Gay

Mathis is openly gay. There is no information regarding whether he is dating anyone at the moment. However, there will be an update. In a 1982 United States Magazine article, he was quoted saying that homosexuality is a way of life that he has grown accustomed to. He later on stated that the comment was not supposed to have been in the record.

After that, he did not publicly talk about his sexual orientation for quite multiple years. In the year 2006, he explained his silence that he received so many death threats as a result of the article. On May 14, 2017, in an interview with CBS News Sunday Morning, he now came out clearly and confirmed that he is gay.

Johnny Mathis Net Worth

Mathis has an annual estimated net worth of $400,000, which he earns through his professional career as a Singer and Songwriter.

Johnny Mathis Career / Songs

Mathis began his career with singles of standard music. He became famous as an album artist with a number of his albums achieving the status of platinum or gold and 73 making the Billboard charts. Often, he is described as a romantic singer. Mathis’s discography includes rhythm and blues, blues, traditional pop, soft rock, Brazilian and Spanish music, country music, a few disco songs, soul, Tin Pan Alley, and show tunes. He released an album called “Mathis Magic” in the year 1979. Mathis also has 6 albums of Christmas songs. He cited Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole, and Lena Horne in an interview in the year 1968.

Mathis’s 1st song was “My Blue Heaven.” He began dancing and singing for visitors at various places including church functions, school, and at home. When he was 13 years old, he was accepted as a student by Connie Cox (voice teacher). This was in exchange for work around Connie’s house. He studied with her for 6 years and he learned operatic and classical singing, voice production, exercises, and vocal scales. In the year 2008, Mathis was responsible for eulogizing Saunders at his funeral, thanking him for giving him his very 1st chance as a singer. Mathis made an appearance as a guest vocalist on Late Night with David Letterman in the year 1988. He appeared there as a singer of Henry Mancini’s theme to the “Viewer Mail” segment.

Mathis has taped 12 of his own TV specials and starred as a guest in more than 300 TV. He has narrated for a 2014 documentary movie ’51 Dons. Mathis has starred in the Season 14 finale of Criminal Minds, “Truth or Dare” where he served as best man at David Rossi’s wedding and acted as an old friend of David.

He has been rehabilitated for both prescription drug addictions and alcohol. Mathis is a philanthropist. he has volunteered at multiple organizations such as the YWCA and YMCA, the American Cancer Society, the NAACP, the March of Dimes, and the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Mathis is an avid enthusiast for sports and golf. For golfing, he has 9 holes in one to his credit. He has served as host for a number of Johnny Mathis Golf Tournaments in the U.S. and U.K.

Mathis has been serving as a host of a charity golf tournament in Belfast sponsored by Shell corporation, since the year 1985. He has also been hosting the annual Johnny Mathis Invitational Track & Field Meet has continued at San Francisco State University since it began in the year 1982. During his leisure, he likes cooking. He published “Cooking for You Alone,” a cookbook, in the year 1982.

Johnny Mathis Awards and Honors

For his 3 recordings: “It’s Not for Me to Say,” “Chances Are,” and “Misty,” he was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. He holds the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, which he received in the year 2003 from the Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. He is an inductee of the Great American Songbook Hall Of Fame (June 21, 2014). In the year 1978, Mathis’s hit duet “The Last Time I Felt Like This” from the movie “Same Time, Next Year” earned a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Original Song.

Mathis holds the Society of Singers Lifetime Achievement Award, which he received in the year 2006. He is a proud inductee of the Hit Parade Hall of Fame (2007). General Colin Powell (Awards Council member) presented the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement in the year 2011.

Johnny Mathis Showbiz Millionaire

In June 1957, Mathis appeared in “The Ed Sullivan Show,” the popular television program. His appearance there assisted him to increase his fame. In that same year, he released the single “Chances Are” which became among his top-selling song copies. He released another single “Wild Is the Wind” in November 1957 and it was featured in the movie of the same name. The single earned a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Original Song.

Mathis has also released his album called “Johnny’s Greatest Hits,” which spent an outstanding 490 successive weeks on the Billboard top 200 album charts – 3 weeks at no.1. He also appeared in his 2nd movie for 20th Century Fox, where he sang the song “A Certain Smile.” This song earned a nomination for the Academy Award for ‘Best Original Song’.

Johnny Mathis Noga

He sued Noga in October 1964 to void their arrangement of management. In December 1964, this caused a fight between Noga with a counterclaim. Upon Mathis split from Noga, he established Jon Mat Records, Inc. in CA on May 11, 1967. There he produces his recordings. on September 30, 1964, he established Rojon Productions, Inc. in CA. There he handles all of his showroom, concert, TV appearances, and theater, as well as all charitable and promotional activities. He formerly founded Global Records where he produced his Mercury albums.

Johnny Mathis Religion

Mathis is a convert to Catholicism – a Roman Catholic.

Johnny Mathis House Fire

Mathis went back home from a concert in Ohio in November 2015 and found that his 80-year-old Hollywood house was up in flames. He had owned the house for 56 years. He said that it was around 5:30 p.m. when he was driving and he heard someone saying that there was a fire at the house. The cause of the fire has never been found to date.