Asner performs in Freakazoid!, part of a voice career that ran alongside six decades of screen work. His register was built on brusqueness with warmth underneath, which is why he was repeatedly cast as authority figures who turn out to be the most decent person present.
He was an American actor from Kansas City who came up through Chicago theatre before television, and he played the same character across a landmark sitcom and its dramatic spin off, an almost unique transition between formats. He was also a union president and a lifelong political activist, positions that cost him work.
Recurring subjects: gruffness concealing decency, men who refuse to express affection directly, and comedy built on impatience. He played irritation better than almost anyone and could turn it into grief in a single line, and his voice work relied on exactly the same instrument without any adjustment for animation.
He is among the most awarded performers in American television history, and his voice lead in an animated feature about an elderly widower travelling by balloon introduced him to an entirely new generation. His trade union work and his political outspokenness are a substantial part of how he is remembered.
For viewers who want warmth delivered through irritation. Suited to families for the animation, and to those who should follow it with the sitcom that made him.
