You probably wouldn’t know Elwood Edwards if you saw him, but you’d recognize him the minute he started talking to you.
Back when the world was simple and AOL was the hottest digital innovation (circa 1999), hearing “You’ve got mail!” after logging in to your account was easily the highlight of your day.
Edwards was the person alerting you to check your inbox.
He was spotted over the weekend, offline and in the driver’s seat of an Uber. Passenger Brandee Barker tweeted this glorious video of her serendipitous ride:
Isn’t Edwards is such a gem?
Edwards told Fast Company earlier this year that he got involved with AOL ― which is now The Huffington Post’s parent company ― before it was even AOL. His wife, Karen, worked for a company called Quantum Computer Services. Quantum wanted to add a voice to the user interface of an online service called Q-Link. Edwards had spent a lot of time in radio and TV, so Karen threw his name into the mix for the project.
Edwards recorded four phrases at the request of Quantum CEO Steve Case ― and they went on to set the tone for a generation of internet users.
So, next time you get into an Uber and hear a particularly familiar-sounding welcome, check to see if you’ve met Edwards.
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