Elwood Edwards, voice of AOL’s ‘You’ve Got Mail,’ dead at 74
Elwood Edwards, the voice actor behind AOL’s iconic “You’ve Got Mail” recording, has died. He was 74.
The news was announced by his former employer, WKYC-TV Studios in Cleveland, who confirmed that Edwards died on Tuesday, Nov. 5, after a “long illness,” though a specific cause of death was not provided.
Edwards was a behind-the-scenes graphics and camera operator at the Cleveland television station, which described the late icon as a “general jack-of-all-trades.”
But it was a specific job in 1989 that would thrust Edwards into worldwide notoriety.
Edwards was paid $200 to record four voiceover lines for America Online (AOL), a web portal that offered internet service, chat rooms and instant messaging. His wife, who worked at a predecessor company, volunteered him for the job when she heard about the opportunity.
Prior to AOL’s popularity, Edward recorded four messages: “Welcome,” “Files done,” “Goodbye” and “You’ve Got Mail,” the last of which would later become a recording recognized by people all over the world.
Once AOL blew up, fans became well-acquainted with Elwood’s “You’ve Got Mail” recording, giving him a taste of celebrity status, though his face was never visible.
Edwards would later go on to make an appearance on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” in 2015.
According to WKYC, Edwards died just one day before what would have been his 75th birthday.