Elwood Edwards, Voice of AOL's 'You've Got Mail,' Dead at 74

Elwood Edwards Voice of AOL's 'You've Got Mail' Dead at 74

Elwood Edwards, the iconic voice of AOL's "You’ve Got Mail" audio message, has died after a long illness.

Elwood died Tuesday, the day before his 75th birthday. His former employer, WKYC-TV Studios in Cleveland, confirmed the sad news. The details of the illness remain unclear.

Elwood was a staple at the Ohio station for years, working as a graphics whiz and camera operator, among other roles. But, it was back in 1989 when he struck gold, earning worldwide fame -- and a spot in internet history -- as the voice of America Online’s "You’ve Got Mail" message.

He was asked to record just 4 simple lines -- "Welcome," "You’ve Got Mail," "Files Done," and "Goodbye" -- and in exchange, he pocketed a cool $200 for his everlasting voiceover work.

The company, known famously as AOL, blew up ... and millions worldwide heard his voice every time they logged onto the internet -- if they had email, a new concept at the time. While his face was never seen, Elwood’s voice gave him a unique kind of minor celeb status, forever tied to those early days of AOL.

He even made a cameo on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" in 2015, where he delivered his classic internet greeting onstage.

He was 74.

RIP