Ed Asner — one the most prolific actors to ever have done it — has died.
His reps confirm to that EA passed away Sunday surrounded by family. No other details about the circumstances of his death have emerged.
The family issued a statement saying, “We are sorry to say that our beloved patriarch passed away this morning peacefully. Words cannot express the sadness we feel. With a kiss on your head- Goodnight dad. We love you.”
Ed was a veteran actor, having gotten his start in showbiz way back in the ’50s, and finding critical success in a recurring role with “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” by playing Lou Grant … Mary’s TV station boss. He starred in 166 episodes of the series, for 7 long years.
He even got his own spinoff out of it … with a show called “Lou Grant” which ran for nearly as long — and of course, Ed took on the lead role there for over a hundred episodes. He’s the most decorated male actor when it comes to Primetime Emmys … the guy won 5 alone for his portrayal of Lou Grant, and two others for different roles in other TV shows.
“Lou Grant” was a decorated series in and of itself — racking up 13 Emmys and Golden Globes too along the way. It was actually the third spinoff off of ‘TMTMS’ … and perhaps the most successful.
Other notable TV series he was involved in with recurring appearances — “The Bronx Zoo,” “The Trials of Rosie O’Neill,” “Hearts Afire,” “Thunder Alley,” “The Closer,” “Center of the Universe” and others. His voice acting career is actually even more impressive … taking off in the ’90s and beyond.
Of course, Ed is also quite famous for his role in “Roots” … for which he won an award as well.
But, even for brief roles … the dude literally touched just about every major television series that was out at the time — including shows like “The Fugitive,” “Iron Horse,” “Mission: Impossible,” “The F.B.I.,” “Ironside,” “Mod Squad,” “Rich Man, Poor Man,” “Hawaii Five-O,” “Police Story,” “Insight,” “Tender is the Night,” “American Playhouse,” “Fish Police” “Roseanne,” “Mad About You,” “Ask Harriet,” “The Closer,” “Hercules,” “The X-Files,” “ER,” “CSI: NY” and more.
He’s lent his talents to shows like “Batman: The Animated Series,” “Superman: The Animated Series,” “Animaniacs,” “Freakazoid!,” “Captain Planet,” “Max Steel,” “Zorro,” “Jumanji,” “Spider-Man: The Animated Series,” “Gargoyles,” “The Simpsons,” “The Cleveland Show” and several more over the years. He even played the lead voice of Carl Fredricksen in Disney’s classic Pixar flick “Up” … so that just an idea of how far and wide his work is known.
Ed’s movie work was just as impressive — he’s been in flicks like John Wayne’s “El Dorado,” “Elf,” “The Gathering,” “JFK,” “O’Hara’s Wife,” “Hard Rain,” “The Christmas Star,” “Gus,” “The Fanatics,” “Basil,” “The Bachelor,” “The Animal,” “Gigantic,” “Saving Christmas,” “Faith, Hope & Love,” “Too Big to Fail,” “Let Go” … and dozens and dozens more.
Ed’s been a part of so many iconic shows and movies … it’s difficult to even attempt to list all of them. All in all, the guy has 416 acting credits to his name … including stuff that’s still being worked on right now for future release.
The last time we saw Ed in person, he was as jovial and nice as ever … happily signing autographs and chatting it up with us while being pushed in a chair. That’s just the kind of guy he was!
He was 91.
RIP
