Ed Asner

---

Autism Light Classic
Updated on July 16, 2014.

---

Autism Light #93 is Ed Asner.

Edward "Ed" Asner is an actor and television legend who lives in Los Angeles, California. He was born on November 15, 1929. Ed Asner is both a father and a grandfather of individuals with autism. Ed Asner is probably best known for his role as Lou Grant on the Mary Tyler Moore Show.  Ed Asner is an Autism Light because of his advocacy on behalf of autism.

Family: Ed Asner has two generations of children with autism in his family.

1. His son Charles Asner (b. 1987) has autism.  
2. His grandson Will through his son Matthew Asner has autism.  

Emmy: Ed Asner won an Emmy for his famous role as Lou Grant in the Mary Tyler Moore Show. A list of all the films is on the Ed Asner IMDb page. In his career as an actor he also served as President of the Screen Actors Guild from 1981-1985. Here is a video where Ed Asner shares memories about the cast of the Mary Tyler Moore Show.


Autism Advocacy: Ed Asner has been an advocate for autism. He notes that autism is a pandemic and if the numbers keep growing it will be the norm to be on the Autism Spectrum and it will be abnormal to be outside of it (Thriving With Autism Blog, 10/20/2011).

Winston School Conversation Series: Ed Asner was the keynote speaker at the Winston School Conversation Series (June, 2009). He presented on the topic “Living Life on the Spectrum: Student and Parent Perspectives on Autism and Asperger’s Syndrome.”

Aspiritech: Ed Asner has served on the Board of Directors of Aspiritech, a company in Chicago that employs individuals with autism for technological testing services.

Autism Speaks Award: Ed Asner has been a longtime supporter of Autism Speaks. On July 19, 2010, Autism Speaks gave a luncheon in Los Angeles in honor of Ed Asner for all of his support over the years for Autism Speaks.

Fundraising: In November, 2012, it was announced that Ed Asner had invented a way for Autism Speaks to raise funds by getting celebrities to record personal greetings for individuals. The cost is $299 and the greetings must be PG (CBS LosAngeles, 11/21/2012, Ed Asner Invents Novel Fundraising Idea Using Celebrity Voices).

Media: Here are two parts of an interview Ed Asner did for the Faces of Autism documentary that is on YouTube.

Social Media: For more information on Ed Asner visit these social media links:

• Ed Asner's Facebook Page
• Ed Asner's Twitter Page @TheOnlyEdAsner

Wikipedia Page: You can read more about Ed Asner on Ed Asner's Wikipedia Page.

Special thanks to Ed Asner for being an Autism Light in the unique ways his celebrity status provides him. Ed Asner is well deserving of being the first actor to represent parents and grandparents of those with autism on Autism Light.
  
Autism Light honors diverse heroes to the world of autism.
    
Photo: The photos used in this post is in the Public Domain. Image sources:  Ed Asner (1985); Ed Asner (2006).