Luciano Pavarotti sings during Pope John Paul II’s visit to Chicago (Oct. 1979)

Pavarotti peforms at Ravinia in September 1983.

opera stars Beverly Sills and Luciano Pavorotti rehearse for "Gala of Stars," a 1980 PBS television special.

Pavarotti kisses the hand of Britain's Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, following a 1990 performance at the Royal Opera House in London.

Luciano Pavarotti indulges his fondness for horses with Smurf, one of the Chicago's carriage horses in 1984.

Pavarotti with his painting titled "Moby Dick" in his dressing room at New York's Metropolitan Opera, prior to his 1978 debut performance as the painter in Puccini's "Tosca".

Placido Domingo, Jose Carreras and Luciano Pavarotti perform at the United Center in 2000.

Pavarotti during the dress rehearsal of Lyric Opera of Chicago's production of Verdi's "Aida," which opened the Lyric season in September 1983.

Pavarotti in September 1977.

Pavarotti during an interview in his New York apartment in 2004.

Pavarotti embraces police officer Ray Isaac as he strolls down Chicago's Michigan Avenue before attending rehearsals for his performance at Ravinia in September 1983.

The cast, chorus and orchestra of the Lyric Opera of Chicago joined in a birthday surprise tribute to Pavarotti in October 1977.

Pavarotti and his then-girlfriend (now wife) Nicoletta Mantovani pose for photographers outside the Hyde Park Hotel in London in 1997.

Pavarotti at a press conference in Belgrade, Serbia-Montenegro in 2005.

A rare early photo of Pavarotti sans beard in 1974.