Coroner

How “Alf” child Benji Gregory really died

Willie (Max Wright) and Brian Tanner Brian (Benji Gregory) in the cult series "Alf"

(Bild: picturedesk.com/KPA)

The death of Benji Gregory, the well-known child face from the US series "Alf", was actually considered a foregone conclusion. But now the coroner has revealed a detail about the cause of death that apparently contributed to the death of the former actor of little Brian Tanner.

Gregory was found dead in his car in the parking lot of a bank in Peoria, Arizona, on June 13. It was 42 degrees Celsius in the area that day. Gregory was only 46 years old. His family explained at the time that he had probably fallen asleep in the car and died of heatstroke due to the high temperatures; his dog was also found dead next to him.

Coroner discovers secret ailment
The coroner's report was published on Friday and shows that the heat alone was not the cause. 

According to US media, the Maricopa coroner wrote in his report that Gregory was exposed to "environmental heat exposure associated with cirrhosis of the liver", which led to his death. The coroner's office classified the death as accidental and the cause of the cirrhosis is unknown.

Gregory had previously struggled with drug problems, which he is said to have overcome with the help of medication. 

100 "Alf" episodes
In around 100 "Alf" episodes between 1986 and 1990, Gregory was the cute little boy next door. He played Brian, the son of the Tanner family, in the sitcom, which was also very successful in Austria. They take in the alien Alf after he accidentally crashes his spaceship into their garage. The shaggy monster from the planet Melmac causes a lot of disruption in the Tanners' lives, and Alf (alien life form) is also after their cat Lucky, because cats are his favorite food. His trademark also included lots of cheeky remarks. In German, the phrase "Null Problemo!" became legendary.

Gregory was eight years old when he slipped into the role of Brian. The child's innocent nature was the ideal contrast to the title character Alf: a shaggy alien who had taken up residence with the American middle-class family and laughed uproariously at his own jokes - usually at the expense of others.

Second nursery
For Benji Gregory, whose real name was Benjamin Gregory Hertzberg, the "Alf" set was his second nursery, as he told the US magazine "People" in 2000. "It only ever felt like work when the lights came on and it got really hot." He still remembers climbing under the stage and fooling around with the crew.

Others involved in the NBC project had less fun. Anne Schedeen, who played mother Kate Tanner, reported a joyless atmosphere on set. When Alf was seen standing, walking or running, the diminutive actor Michu Meszaros was in a shaggy costume. Often, however, the actors spoke to a puppet. All the shots were heavily dominated by animation.

According to Anne Schedeen, the set was cramped and the heat in the studio was intense. However, the relationship between lead actor Max Wright (Willie Tanner) and the rest of the crew was obviously frosty. On the last day of filming, he is said to have left without saying goodbye.

Big successes failed to materialize
Gregory later appeared in other series such as "The A-Team", "Punky Brewster" and "Amazing Stories", but did not enjoy great success. According to the industry portal imdb.com, he was also temporarily employed by the US Navy's weather service.

Only two of the formative actors of the series are still alive: Anne Schedeen (Kate Tanner) and Andrea Elson, who played their TV daughter Lynn. Max Wright (Wille Tanner) died in 2019, Alf actor Michu Meszaros in 2016, and the actors of the neighboring couple Trevor and Raquel Ochmonek, John LaMotta and Liz Sheridan, are also no longer alive.