Elwood Edwards, the iconic voice behind America Online’s famous “You’ve got mail” announcement, has passed away at the age of 74.
He died on Tuesday at his residence in New Bern, North Carolina, as confirmed by his daughter, Heather Edwards.
The cause of death was complications arising from a stroke that he suffered late last year.

Edwards recorded the memorable AOL greeting back in 1989 using a simple tape recorder in his living room.
The phrase “You’ve got mail” quickly emerged as a popular catchphrase during the late 1990s and was later adopted as the title of a well-known film starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan in 1998.
According to his daughter, Edwards would often feel bashful whenever people mentioned his famous line.
“He loved the attention, but he never got used to it,” she shared.

In addition to the iconic greeting, Edwards lent his voice to other AOL messages such as “Welcome,” “Goodbye,” and “File’s done.”
Remarkably, he earned just $200 for all of his recordings.
Although many might not recognize him by face, his voice resonated with millions of users daily.
He even made an appearance on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” in 2015, where he relived the famous catchphrase for delighted fans.

Prior to his fame with AOL, Edwards had a background in radio before transitioning to television.
He had a brief role as a weatherman and worked as an announcer but primarily spent his career working behind the scenes, according to his daughter.

Elwood Edwards is survived by another daughter, Sallie Edwards, a granddaughter named Abbie Edwards, and a brother, Bill.
The family is planning to commemorate his life with a memorial service scheduled for Monday in New Bern.