Jinny Osborn (born Virginia Cole; April 25, 1927 – May 19, 2003) was an American

popular music Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Fun ...

singer. She founded the group

the Chordettes The Chordettes were an American female vocal quartet, specializing in traditional pop music. They are best known for their 1950s hit singles " Mr. Sandman" and " Lollipop", both of which sold over a million copies. Career The group organized i ...

with three friends in 1946, which became one of the longest-lasting American vocal groups of the mid-20th century. Her final departure in 1961 led to the group's dissolution.

Early life and education

Osborn was born to Orlan H. "King" Cole and Katherine Flack in Seattle and grew up in

Sheboygan, Wisconsin Sheboygan () is a city in Sheboygan County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. The population was 49,929 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Sheboygan Metropolitan statistical area, metropolitan area, which has a pop ...

. Her father was president of the

Barbershop Harmony Society The Barbershop Harmony Society, legally and historically named the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barber Shop Quartet Singing in America, Inc. (SPEBSQSA), is the first of several organizations to promote and preserve barbersho ...

, and is also remembered today as the founder of the "Clipper City Chordsmen" of Manitowoc. He was also the president of the Kingsbury Breweries Company. Osborn attended

Shimer College Shimer Great Books School ( ) is a Classic_book#University_programs, Great Books college that is part of North Central College in Naperville, Illinois. Prior to 2017, Shimer was an independent, accredited college on the south side of Chicago, or ...

, which at the time was a

four-year junior college A four-year junior college was a type of educational institution in the United States in the 20th century that provided education from the 11th to the 14th grades, corresponding to the last two years of high school and the first two years of coll ...

, for the 11th and 12th grades, graduating in 1945. Shimer was well known for its music program, and Osborn she majored in music in addition to playing violin in a student group that performed in nearby towns.

Musical career

Osborn and three friends (Janet Ertel, Alice Mae Buschmann Spielvogel, and Dorothy Schwartz) formed

in 1946, with Osborn singing tenor. Alice Spielvogel was replaced by Carol Buschmann, her sister-in-law, in 1947. In 1952, Lynn Evans (née Hargate; May 2, 1924 – February 6, 2020) replaced Schwartz. And in 1953, Margie Needham replaced Osborn (who was having a baby), though Osborn later returned to the group. Nancy Overton also was a member of the group at a later time. Initially they did principally folk music in the

barbershop quartet A barbershop quartet is a group of four singers who sing music in the barbershop style, characterized by four-part harmony without instrumental accompaniment (a cappella). The four voices are: the lead, the vocal part which typically carries t ...

style, though they gradually adopted more conventional pop forms. The group gained prominence when they appeared on the television show ''

Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts ''Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts'' (also known as ''Talent Scouts'') is an American radio and television variety show that ran on CBS from 1946 until 1958. Sponsored by Lipton Tea, it starred Arthur Godfrey, who was also hosting '' Arthur God ...

'' in 1949, returning as regular guests over the next four years. In 1953, Godfrey replaced their act with the

McGuire Sisters The McGuire Sisters were a singing trio in American popular music. The group was composed of three sisters: * Ruby Christine McGuire (July 30, 1926 – December 28, 2018) * Dorothy "Dottie" McGuire (February 13, 1928 – September 7, 2012) * P ...

. In the same year, Osborn left the group to have a daughter, thereby missing appearing on the recording of " Mr. Sandman". She was temporarily replaced by Margie Needham. Osborn did however appear on several of the group's subsequent major hits, including "Born to be With You" (1956), "Just Between You and Me" (1957) and "

Lollipop A lollipop is a type of sugar candy usually consisting of hard candy mounted on a stick and intended for sucking or licking. Different informal terms are used in different places, including lolly, sucker and sticky-pop. Lollipops are avail ...

" (1958). She also appeared in the group's appearance on the very first episode of ''

American Bandstand ''American Bandstand'' (AB) is an American Music television, music performance and dance television series that aired in various iterations from 1952 to 1989. It was hosted by Dick Clark who also served as the program's Television producer, pr ...

'' in 1957.

Later life and legacy

After the breakup of The Chordettes, Osborn lived in southern California and largely avoided public life. However, she continued to sing in informal barbershop quartet groups, including annual gatherings in Chicago. She died of cancer on May 19, 2003, in Palm Springs.

Works cited

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Osborn, Jinny 1927 births 2003 deaths Shimer College alumni Singers from Seattle People from Sheboygan, Wisconsin Traditional pop music singers Deaths from cancer in California 20th-century American women singers 20th-century American singers 21st-century American women