If you’re at least in your mid-thirties (or not), you probably know the voice of Elwood Edwards, whether you realize it or not. He recorded the phrase “I got your email!” Three other lines of quantum computing services were established in 1989. The company later rebranded to America Online, and the rest is early internet history. Mr. Edwards died on Tuesday.
WKYC first reported that Edwards died the day before what would have been his 75th birthday (via Variety). He was a longtime off-camera presence at a Cleveland television station as a graphic designer, camera operator, and jack-of-all-trades employee.
His wife, Karen Edwards, was working at Quantum when she heard the company’s then-CEO talk about the need for a spokesperson for the software that would soon attack mailboxes across the country. “So she volunteered to be my voice,” Edwards said in the 2012 video. “And I recorded the phrase you know on the cassette deck in the living room.”
He was paid a total of $200 for his voiceover work.
The new message tagline, recorded in Edwards’ calm, friendly voice, became a cultural phenomenon during AOL’s heyday in the ’90s and early 2000s. Of course, this also includes the inspiration for the title of the 1998 Nora Ephron romantic comedy.
Edwards also provided three AOL words (less known but still remembered by many): “Welcome,” “File Completed,” and “Goodbye.” A 2012 video shows him stalking various employees and provoking them to make statements. (AOL is now owned by Yahoo, Engadget’s parent company.)
“So this is the story behind the tagline,” he said in the clip, “Well, I have some difficulty escaping.”
