José Mojica
| José Mojica | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born |
Crescenciano Abel Exaltación de la Cruz José de Jesús Mojica Montenegro y Chavarín September 14, 1896 San Gabriel, Jalisco, Mexico |
| Died | September 20, 1974 (aged 78) Lima, Peru |
| Nationality | Mexican |
| Other names | Fray José de Guadalupe Mojica, OFM |
| Years active | 1947–1974 (religious) 1930–1966 (actor) 1919–1940 (opera singer) |
Fray José de Guadalupe Mojica [mohe-cah] (September 14, 1896 – September 20, 1974) was a Mexican Franciscan friar and former tenor and film actor. He was known in the music and film fields as José Mojica.
Mojica joined the world of the American film industry before entering religious life. Together with Dolores del Río, Tito Guízar, Ramón Novarro and Lupe Vélez, he was among the few Mexican people who made history in the early years of Hollywood. Regarding his activity as a friar, singer and actor, he felt that religion and art have never been at conflict. If God gave me the grace of voice and singing skills, I use them for His glory, he explained.
Born in San Gabriel, Jalisco, Mojica was raised in a coffee and sugar plantation community until the age of six, after his step father Francisco died. He never knew his real father. When his mother's extended family suffered financial reverses, they moved with limited means to Mexico City, where he studied at the Academy of San Carlos and later attended the National School of Agriculture. To learn more of those years of Revolution and Counter Revolution and their impacts on the young Mojica, you might read Mojica's "I a Sinner"where he describes the traumatic day of the closing of the military academy due to the Mexican Revolution armed conflict. This experience led him to find his true calling, and began to take private voice lessons while studying at the National Conservatory of Music of Mexico.
In addition, Mojica sharpened his skills in drama and displayed a particular gift for languages as he mastered English, Italian and French. He also learned to play the guitar and play Mexican songs as well practiced dance, athletics and horse riding. When he felt secure, he began working as operatic tenor at the Teatro Ideal. Then, on October 5, 1916 debuted at the Teatro Arbeu, where he played the Count Almaviva role in Rossini's opera The Barber of Seville. The following year, he performed the role of Rodrigo in Verdi's Otello.
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