Editing Enrico Caruso (section)

===Metropolitan Opera===
In 1903, Caruso made his debut with the [[Metropolitan Opera]] in New York City. The gap between his London and New York engagements had been filled by a series of performances in Italy, Portugal and South America. Caruso's contract had been negotiated by his agent, the banker and impresario [[Pasquale Simonelli]]. Caruso's debut was in a new production of ''Rigoletto'' on 23 November 1903. This time, [[Marcella Sembrich]] sang opposite him as Gilda. A few months later, he began his lifelong association with the [[Victor Talking Machine Company]]. He made his first American records on 1 February 1904, having signed a lucrative financial deal with Victor. Thereafter, his recording career ran in tandem with his Met career, both bolstering each other, until his death in 1921.

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File:CarusoO.jpg|Medal that Caruso gave to [[Pasquale Simonelli]],<ref>{{cite book|last=Pasquale J.|first=Simonelli|year=2012|title=Enrico Caruso Unedited Notes|publisher=Sacer Equestris Aureus Ordo|isbn=978-0615714905}}</ref> his New York City impresario
File:CarusoR.jpg|Reverse: [[Euterpe]], muse of music, with lyre
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Caruso purchased the Villa Bellosguardo, a palatial country house near [[Florence]], in 1904. The villa became his retreat away from the pressures of the operatic stage and the grind of travel. Caruso's preferred address in New York City was a suite at Manhattan's [[The Knickerbocker Hotel (Manhattan)|Knickerbocker Hotel]]. Caruso commissioned the New York jewellers [[Tiffany & Co.]] to strike a 24-carat gold medal adorned with the tenor's profile. He presented the medal in gratitude to Simonelli as a souvenir of his many well-remunerated performances at the Met.

In addition to his regular New York engagements, Caruso gave recitals and operatic performances in a large number of cities across the United States and sang in Canada. He also continued to sing widely in Europe, appearing again at Covent Garden in 1904–07 and 1913–14, and undertaking a UK tour in 1909.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.operascotland.org/news/136/Enrico+Caruso+in+Scotland |date=3 September 1909 |title=Enrico Caruso in Scotland|publisher=Opera Scotland |access-date=4 April 2012}}</ref> Audiences in France, Belgium, Monaco, Austria, Hungary and Germany also heard him before the outbreak of World War I. In 1909, Melba asked him to participate in her forthcoming tour of Australia, but he declined because of the significant amount of travel time that such a trip would entail.

[[File:Enrico Caruso VI.png|thumb|Caruso in the role of [[La fanciulla del West|Dick Johnson]], 1910/1911]]

Members of the Met's roster of artists, including Caruso, had visited San Francisco in April 1906 for a series of performances. Following an appearance as Don José in ''[[Carmen]]'' at the city's Grand Opera House, a strong jolt awakened Caruso at 5:13 on the morning of the 18th in his suite at the [[Palace Hotel, San Francisco#The original Palace Hotel|Palace Hotel]]. He found himself in the middle of the [[San Francisco earthquake of 1906|San Francisco earthquake]], which led to a series of fires that destroyed most of the city. The Met lost all the sets, costumes and musical instruments that it had brought on tour, but none of the artists were harmed. Holding an autographed photo of President [[Theodore Roosevelt]], Caruso ran from the hotel but was composed enough to walk to the [[St. Francis Hotel]] for breakfast. Charlie Olson, the broiler cook, made the tenor bacon and eggs. Apparently, the quake had no effect on Caruso's appetite, as he cleaned his plate and tipped Olson $2.50.<ref name=Bronson>Bronson, William, ''The Earth Shook, The Sky Burned'', p. 50</ref> Caruso made an ultimately successful effort to flee the city, first by boat and then by train. He vowed never to return to San Francisco and kept his word.<ref name=Bronson /><ref>An account of the earthquake by Caruso's lifelong friend, the baritone [[Antonio Scotti]], including Scotti's observations of Caruso's behaviour, is found in Pierre Key's biography of Caruso, {{harvnb|Key|Zirato|1922|pp=228–229}}</ref>

In November 1906, Caruso was charged with an indecent act allegedly committed in the monkey house of New York's [[Central Park Zoo]]. The police accused him of pinching the buttocks of a married woman. Caruso claimed a monkey did the bottom-pinching. He was later found guilty and fined 10 dollars, although evidence suggested that he may have been entrapped by the victim and the arresting officer.{{Citation needed |date= October 2022}} Initially, the leaders of New York's opera-going high society were outraged by the incident, which received extensive newspaper coverage, but it was soon forgotten and Caruso's popularity was unaffected.<ref>David Suisman, "[http://www.believermag.com/issues/200406/?read=article_suisman Welcome to the Monkey House]: Enrico Caruso and the First Celebrity Trial of the Twentieth Century". In ''The Believer'', June 2004, webpage accessed 14 May 2009.</ref> Caruso's fan base at the Met was not restricted, however, to the wealthy. Members of America's middle classes also paid to hear him sing—or buy copies of his recordings—and he enjoyed a substantial following among New York's 500,000 Italian immigrants.

[[File:Enrico Caruso01 crop.jpg|thumb|Caruso in 1911]]

On 10 December 1910, Caruso created the role of Dick Johnson in the world premiere of Puccini's ''[[La fanciulla del West]]''. The composer wrote the music for Johnson with Caruso's voice specifically in mind. Appearing with Caruso were two more of the Met's star singers, the Czech soprano [[Emmy Destinn]] and baritone Pasquale Amato. Toscanini, then the Met's principal conductor, presided in the orchestra pit and Puccini himself, supervised the production.