Ed Asner, Voice of Carl Fredricksen in ‘Up’, Has Died at Age 91

Ed Asner, the legendary actor who voiced curmudgeonly Carl Fredricksen in Disney-Pixar’s Up, has passed away at age 91. His passing was confirmed by his family on Twitter.

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 Asner (@TheOnlyEdAsner) August 29, 2021

Asner was best known for his role as Lou Grant on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” and “Lou Grant.”

From USA Today…

Asner, a U.S. Army veteran, took on a broad range of roles over an acting career that spanned seven decades, playing burly cops and 5 o’clock-shadowed heavies in pre-“Mary” ’60s dramas while endearing himself to younger generations who wouldn’t know Lou Grant from Ted Baxter in 2003’s “Elf” and 2009’s “Up.”

His seven Emmys, five for playing Grant on “Mary” and “Lou Grant,” are a record for a male actor, and Asner was the first actor to win Emmys for playing the same character on both a comedy and drama series. He won his other two Emmys for playing harsh, unlikable characters on two historic miniseries, “Roots” and “Rich Man, Poor Man.”

Asner’s commitment to acting went beyond the screen, as the pro-union progressive’s opposition to the 1980 actors strike settlement led to his candidacy and eventual election to the presidency of the Screen Actors Guild, which he held from 1981 to 1985.

Asner was a prolific voice actor. In addition to Carl Fredrickson, he voiced J. Jonah Jameson on the 1990s Spider-Man animated series, Hudson in Disney’s Gargoyles, and so many more.

[Source: USA Today]