Waking Up In America

American actor Ed Asner grew up having to defend himself both vocally and physically; he was raised in the only Jewish family in his neighborhood. A born competitor, Asner played championship football in high school, and organized a top-notch basketball team which toured most of liberated Europe. Asner's performing career got its start while he was announcing for his high school radio station; moving to Chicago in the 1950s, the actor was briefly a member of the Playwrights Theatre Club until he went to New York to try his luck on Broadway. Ed Asner won five Emmy awards for portraying the character of Mary Tyler Moore's boss Lou Grant in The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970-1977), and a crusading newspaperman for the spin-off series Lou Grant (1977-1982). Asner's public persona is also that of a crusader, a celebrity activist considered left of center. Asner also was a two-term president of the Screen Actors Guild. web site www.ed-asner.com