From ‘Lou Grant’ to ‘Up,’ Ed Asner’s must-see roles
With a storied six-decade career, the late Ed Asner packed his repertoire with dozens of beloved characters and many, many cameos and guest appearances.
The seemingly indefatigable “Mary Tyler Moore Show” alumnus and “Lou Grant” star, who also had a string of Broadway credits, began his TV career in earnest in the 1960s when he appeared in anthology series such as “Alfred Hitchcock Presents” and “Route 66,” then “Thunder Alley” and “Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip.” Asner’s roles went on to include present-day streaming darlings “Grace & Frankie,” “Dead to Me” and “Cobra Kai.”
The seven-time Emmy Award winner, who died Sunday at age 91, worked until the end. He’ll appear in a number of posthumous roles for years to come, including the animated projects “Dug Days,” “The Gettysburg Address” and “Back Home Again;” as well as the live-action series and films “A Fargo Christmas Story,” “Awaken” and “The Last Saturday Night.”
Until then, here’s a look back on some Asner’s must-see roles:
Lou Grant in ‘Mary Tyler Moore’ and ‘Lou Grant’
Asner’s most iconic role was that of veteran newsman Lou Grant – a character who originated as the blustery but lovable, spunk-hating news director of the 1970 sitcom “The Mary Tyler Moore Show.” The “everyman” role earned Asner three comedy Emmys and led to the hourlong dramatic series “Lou Grant,” which ran on CBS from 1977 to 1982. Asner’s portrayal of the hard-nosed city editor of the Los Angeles Tribune earned him two Emmys for drama, making him the only actor to win Emmys for playing the same character in both a comedy and a drama.
“He radiates warmth, generosity and caring, someone who reflects a toughness over a mound of Jell-o, a nice degree of intelligence but a working intelligence as opposed to an arrogant one,” he told The Times about the character in 1977.
Santa Claus in ‘Elf’
Returning to feel-good fare, Asner played Santa Claus in the 2003 Will Ferrell comedy “Elf.” It was a relatively small role, but a climactic one – Asner’s Santa is marooned in Central Park because of a dearth of holiday spirit, so Ferrell’s Buddy the elf helps power up Santa’s sleigh while his friends spread Christmas cheer by singing loud for all to hear.
It was one of many St. Nick roles that Asner took on over the years, prompting him to say, “I’m getting too old for this job!” in the comedy. Prior to that role, his other holiday films include 1996’s animated “The Story of Santa Claus,” the 1991 TV movie “Yes, Virginia, There Is a Santa Claus” and 2002’s “The Man Who Saved Christmas.” He also earned an Emmy Award nomination for the 2006 film “A Christmas Card.”
Carl Fredricksen in ‘Up’
Asner voiced the cranky Carl Fredricksen – a widower who tries hoisting his house into the air with exactly 20,622 helium balloons – in Pixar’s Oscar-winning 2009 tear-jerker “Up.”
The animation studio tweeted that Asner was “our real life Carl Fredricksen: a veneer of grouch over an incredibly loving and kind human being.” Asner’s work on the spinoff TV Series “Dug Days” was completed prior to his death.