The voice of America Online’s “You’ve got mail” has died at age 74

On Tuesday, Elwood Edwards, the voice behind the online service America Online's iconic "You've got mail" greeting, died at age 74, one day before his 75th birthday, according to Cleveland's WKYC Studios, where he worked for many years. The greeting became a cultural touchstone in the 1990s and early 2000s in the early Internet era; it was heard by hundreds of millions of users when they logged in to the service and new email was waiting for them.

The story of Edwards' famous recording began in 1989 when Steve Case, CEO of Quantum Computer Services (which later became America Online—or AOL for short), wanted to add a human voice to the company's Quantum Link online service. Karen Edwards, who worked as a customer service representative, heard Case discussing the plan and suggested her husband Elwood, a professional broadcaster.

Edwards recorded the famous phrase (and several others) into a cassette recorder in his living room in 1989 and was paid $200 for the service. His voice recordings of "Welcome," "You've got mail," "File's done," and "Goodbye" went on to reach millions of users during AOL's rise to dominance in the 1990s online landscape.

The mail alert phrase was perhaps most notable and popular in the dial-up online era, when users would call local AOL phone numbers with a modem to access the nationwide online network. At the time, AOL was also one of America's largest Internet service providers.

In 1995, Wired Magazine's AOL forum asked Edwards to record 10 humorous sound files using his iconic voice. The results, which include classics such as "You want fries with that," "You've got credit card debt," and "Stop touching me!" still live on in the depths of The Internet Archive. He also ran a side business recording custom sound files for AOL users.

A screenshot of America Online's version 2.5 client in 1995.

Over time, the "You've got mail" line became something of a cultural reference point, as tech journalist Harry McCracken pointed out in 2011 on his Technologizer blog, with various news headlines often borrowing the "You've got [something]" structure for humorous effect.

Edwards' voice greeting became so embedded in American popular culture that it inspired the 1998 romantic comedy You've Got Mail. The film stars Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan as rival bookstore owners who unknowingly fall in love through anonymous email exchanges. Director Nora Ephron built the movie's narrative around the anticipation that AOL users felt when hearing Edwards' voice announce new messages, with the film grossing $250 million worldwide.

At WKYC, Edwards worked behind the scenes as a graphics specialist, camera operator, and general production staff member since 2002. His voice work brought him occasional moments in the spotlight, including an appearance in a 2000 episode of The Simpsons, where he played a virtual doctor announcing, "You've got leprosy." He appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in 2015, performing his classic greeting along with phrases suggested by the audience.

Before his death, Edwards worked as an Uber driver. His voice continues to greet users of AOL's current email service, maintaining an enduring connection to the early days of consumer Internet access.