'ALF' star Benji Gregory found dead

Benji Gregory, the actor known for his role in the 1980s television series ALF, has died at the age of 46.

Gregory's death was announced by his sister, Rebeccas Pfaffiginger, via her Facebook account.

On Wednesday, July 10, 2024, she posted the following message:

Here's what we know:

According to Pfaffinger, both Gregory and his service dog were found dead in Gregory's car on Jun 13, 2024.

"My brother Ben was found in his car, along with his beloved service dog Hans, deceased on June 13. We believe he went there the evening of the 12th to deposit some residuals. (Found in his car) and never got out of the car to do so. He fell asleep and died from vehicular heatstroke," she wrote.

Gregory's official cause of death, however, has yet to be determined by the medical examiner in Maricopa County, Arizona.

Pfaffinger, in her post, also wrote, "It is with a heavy heart my family has suffered a loss way too early."

She added, "Ben was a great Son, Brother and Uncle. He was fun to be around and made us laugh quite often. Still, going through his things, I find myself laughing at little videos or notes of his, in between crying."

Who was Benji Gregory?

From a professional standpoint, Gregory is best known for playing Brian Tanner on the 1980s NBC sitcom ALF. At the time of the show's debut - in September 1986 - Gregory was only eight years old.

For those unfamiliar with the show, the New York Times reports:

The show featured a suburban family whose world is thrown upside down when a back-talking, pointy-eared alien from the planet Melmac crash-lands through their garage. The Tanner family calls the alien ALF, short for Alien Life Form, and he stays with them, causing mischief and voicing his observations about humankind. Brian and ALF soon become the best of friends.

ALF ended up being quite successful, and the show continued for four seasons. ALF, however, was not the only show that Gregory participated in.

Fox News reports:

Born on May 26, 1978, in Los Angeles, Gregory kick-started his TV career at a young age. He made appearances on television shows such as The A-Team, T.J. Hooker, Punky Brewster, The Twilight Zone and more. After his time on "ALF," Gregory voiced Edgar the Mole in the 1993 animated feature Once Upon a Forest. This seems to be his last known credit.

Then, in the early 2000s, Gregory gave up acting and joined the U.S. Navy. He remained there until receiving an honorable medical discharge in 2005.