Seven Time Emmy Winner Ed Asner Useless at 91 – CBS San Francisco

LOS ANGELES (AP) – Ed Asner, the burly, prolific character actor who starred in middle age as the gruff but lovable reporter Lou Grant, first in the hit comedy “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” and later in the drama “Lou Grant” died on Sunday. He was 91.

Asner’s agent confirmed the actor’s death in an email to The Associated Press. Asner’s official Twitter account contained a note from his children: “We are sorry to say our beloved Patriarch died peacefully this morning. Words cannot express the sadness we feel. With a kiss on the head – good night dad. We love you.”

CONTINUE READING: Regional air quality notice published for Monday

Built like the football lineman he once was, the bald-headed Asner was a journeyman in film and television when he was hired in 1970 to play Lou Grant on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. For seven seasons he was the crumpled boss of Moore’s exuberant Mary Richards (he called her “Mary”, she called him “Mr. Grant”) on the fictional Minneapolis TV newsroom that they both worked for. He would later play the role in “Lou Grant” for five years.

The role earned Asner three Emmys for Best Supporting Actress on “Mary Tyler Moore” and two awards for Best Actor on “Lou Grant.” He also won Emmys for his roles in the miniseries “Rich Man, Poor Man” (1975-1976) and “Roots” (1976-1977).

He had more than 300 acting credits and remained active in a variety of film and television roles throughout his 1970s and 80s. In 2003 he played Santa in Will Ferrell’s hit film “Elf”. He was John Goodman’s father in the 2004 CBS short-lived comedy Center of the Universe and the voice of the older hero in the hit 2009 Pixar release Up. More recently, he has appeared in television series such as Forgive Me “Dead to Me” to see.

Nonetheless, Asner told The Associated Press in 2009 that interesting roles were hard to come by.

“I never get enough work,” he says. “It’s the story of my career. There is simply nothing to refuse, let me put it this way. “

“I would say most people are probably in the same boat, old folks, and it’s a shame,” he said.

As president of the Screen Actors Guild, the liberal Asner got into political controversy in 1982 when he spoke out against US involvement with repressive governments in Latin America. “Lou Grant” was dismissed during the furore that followed, and he did not run for a third SAG term in 1985.

Asner spoke about his politicization in a 2002 interview, noting that he had started his career during the McCarthy era and for years was afraid to speak out for fear of being blacklisted.

Then he saw a nun film showing the atrocities that the El Salvador government inflicted on the citizens of that country.

“I came out to complain about the continued arming and reinforcement of the military in El Salvador by our country, which oppress its people,” he said.

Former SAG president Charlton Heston and others accused him of making un-American remarks and abusing his position as head of their actors’ union.

“We even had bomb threats back then. I had armed guards, ”Asner recalled.

CONTINUE READING: Caldor Fire Update: Firefighters prepare for red flag warning winds; Intense firefight near Strawberry

The actor blamed the controversy for the end of the five-year run of “Lou Grant,” despite CBS insisting that falling audience ratings were the reason for the show’s cancellation.

Asner’s character had picked up from the first episode of “Mary Tyler Moore” when he said to Mary when they first met, “You have cum. … I hate cum! ”The inspired cast included Ted Knight as Ted Baxter, the stupid news anchor; Gavin MacLeod as Murray Slaughter, the sarcastic news writer; and Betty White as manipulative, sex-obsessed homeshow hostess Sue Ann Nivens. Valerie Harper and Cloris Leachman, who played Mary’s Neighbors, both saw their characters transition into their own shows.

“Mary Tyler Moore” was still a hit when the star decided to pursue other interests, so season seven ended with a hilarious finale in which all the principals except the awkward Baxter were fired.

Asner immediately switched to Lou Grant, his character who moved from Minneapolis to Los Angeles to become city editor of the Tribune, a crusade newspaper owned by publisher Margaret Pynchon and unforgettable played by Nancy Marchand.

Though the show had its bright moments, its scripts touched on a variety of darker social issues that most series would not address at the time, including alcoholism and homelessness. Asner remained politically active for the rest of his life and in 2017 published the book “The Grouchy Historian: An Old-Time Lefty Defends Our Constitution Against Right Wing Hypocrites and Nutjobs”.

Asner, born in Kansas City, Missouri in 1929, almost became a journalist in real life. He studied journalism at the University of Chicago until a professor told him there was little money to be made in this profession.

He quickly switched to acting and made his debut as the martyr Thomas Becket in a campus production of TS Eliot’s “Murder in the Cathedral”.

He eventually dropped out of school, worked as a taxi driver and other jobs before being drafted in 1951. He served in the Army Signal Corps in France.

Returning to Chicago after military service, he performed at the Playwrights Theater Club and Second City, the famous satirical troupe that started the careers of dozens of top comedians.

Later, in New York, he joined the longstanding “The Threepenny Opera” and appeared alongside Jack Lemmon in “Face of a Hero”.

When Asner arrived in Hollywood in 1961 for an episode of the television series “Naked City”, he decided to stay and appeared in numerous films and television programs, including the film “El Dorado” opposite John Wayne; and the Elvis Presley vehicles “Kid Galahad” and “Change of Habit”. He was a regular on the 1960s political drama series Slattery’s People.

He was married twice to Nancy Lou Sykes and Cindy Gilmore and had four children, Matthew, Liza, Kate and Charles.

MORE NEWS: San Jose woman dead in collision on Highway 101

© Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.