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Ed Asner (1929–2021), actor known for “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” and “Up”

by Linnea Crowther

Ed Asner was an actor who rose to fame playing cranky newsman Lou Grant on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” from 1970 to 1977 and had later voice acting fame in 2009’s “Up.”

Acting career

When Asner began playing Lou Grant on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” he gave the character the perfect blend of cranky gruffness and underlying kindheartedness. His character was spun off into his own show, “Lou Grant,” with the unusual switch from the half-hour comedy of “Mary Tyler Moore” to an hour-long drama for “Lou Grant.” Asner won five Emmy Awards for playing Lou Grant across the two series, in addition to two other Emmys for the miniseries “Rich Man, Poor Man” and “Roots,” making him the most honored male performer in Emmy Awards history. Asner appealed to younger generations as he provided the voice of another gruff fellow with a tender heart: Carl Fredricksen in Pixar’s “Up” (2009). Asner also notably played Santa Claus in “Elf” (2003).

Beyond his best-known roles, Asner had hundreds of acting credits in a television and movie career that spanned seven decades. His movies include the Elvis Presley musical “Change of Habit” (1969), “They Call Me Mister Tibbs!” (1970), and “JFK” (1991). On TV, he had recurring roles in “Mad About You,” “ER,” and “Dead to Me,” and he provided voices for many animated series including “Spider-Man: The Animated Series,” “King of the Hill,” “The Boondocks,” and “The Cleveland Show.” And he made guest appearances on shows as diverse as “Gunsmoke,” “The Mod Squad,” “Roseanne,” “The X-Files,” and “Cobra Kai.” Asner was president of the Screen Actors Guild from 1981 to 1985.

How Asner kept his cool while acting

“You concentrate on the basics; you concentrate on being as perfect as you can on the lines. You work on your breath control. You keep telling yourself, ‘Stop being a schmuck, stop being a schmuck.’ And you concentrate, concentrate, concentrate. Even this will not save you, but you’ve got to rely on the basics.” —from a 2010 interview with the Television Academy Foundation

Tributes to Ed Asner

Full obituary: The New York Times

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