Elwood Edwards, the man behind the voice of AOL's 'You've got mail' greeting, dies at 74
CTV
Elwood Edwards, who voiced America Online’s ever-present 'You’ve got mail' greeting, has died Tuesday at his home in New Bern, N. C. He was 74.
Elwood Edwards, who voiced America Online’s ever-present “You’ve got mail” greeting, has died. He was 74.
He died Tuesday at his home in New Bern, N. C., said his daughter Heather Edwards. The cause was complications from a stroke late last year, she said.
Edwards taped his AOL greeting in 1989 into a recorder while sitting in the living room of his home. “You’ve got mail” became a pop culture catchphrase in the late 1990s and served as the title of the 1998 Tom Hanks-Meg Ryan film.
“He would still blush anytime someone brought it up,” his daughter said. “He loved the attention, but he never got used to it.”
He was also the voice of AOL’s “Welcome,” "Goodbye” and “File’s done” messages. He made US$200 from the recordings.
He got the gig while working at an independent TV station in Washington, D.C. His second wife, Karen, was a customer service representative for the internet provider that later became known as AOL. She heard the company was looking for someone to be the voice of its software and suggested her husband.
“They were so impressed, they didn’t have him go in a recording booth,” his daughter said.
