John Charles Thomas, born on September 6, 1891 in Meyersdale, Pennsylvania, was an American opera singer. He initially studied medicine but won a scholarship to the Peabody Institute in Baltimore in 1910. Thomas began his operatic career with a concert performance of Rimsky-Korsakov's Sadko at Carnegie Hall in December 1924 and made his fully staged opera debut as Amonasro in Verdi’s Aida in March 1925. He performed extensively in Europe and the United States, singing with various opera companies and making recordings for Vocalion, Brunswick Records, and RCA Victor. Thomas joined the Metropolitan Opera in New York City in 1934, performing alongside Rosa Ponselle until 1943. He co-founded the Music Academy of the West summer conservatory in 1947, toured Australia and New Zealand from 1947 to 1948, and retired gradually after 1950. Thomas died on December 13, 1960 in Apple Valley, California.
