Mourning for Benji Gregory - The others "Alf" actors do this today
Over thirty years ago, the sitcom "Alf" achieved great success. The alien from Planet Melmac captured the hearts of TV viewers in a storm. It was recently announced that Benji Gregory (1978-2024), who played Brian Tanner, died at the age of only 46. After the end of the series in 1990, he was only seen in small television roles, such as in "The Forgotten" (1991) and "Murphy Brown" (1991). He eventually turned his back on acting in the early 2000s and joined the US Marine. He was honorably discharged from the Navy in 2005. The reason for his discharge is believed to be health issues. Many of his "Alf" co-stars also led lives away from the TV landscape after the show ended.
Lynn Tanner is now a Yoga Instructor
His TV sister Lynn Tanner, played by Andrea Elson (55), has since turned away from acting. After the end of the sitcom, she had small roles in several series. She was in "Who's the Boss?" (1990), "Married... with Children" (1993), and "The Young and the Restless" (1998). Since 1993, she has been married to production assistant Scott Hopper. She met him on the "Alf" set and took on his last name. Now she goes by the name Annie Hopper. The couple has two children and lives in California. The former actress runs a yoga studio there.
Anne Schedeen (75) also hung up her acting career after "Alf" quite quickly. She played the mother of the family, Kate Tanner. Before this role, she was a well-known TV actress. She appeared in numerous TV productions in the 1970s and 1980s, such as "The Incredible Hulk" (1979) and "Three's Company" (1978-1982). After "Alf", offers came less frequently. In the early 2000s, she was in "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" for three episodes. In 2014, she had a role in the web series "Tiny Nuts". Then it went quiet around the actress. She later used her fame as a spokesperson for the Bulgarian non-profit organization "Holiday Heroes".
Mourning Max Wright
Fans mourned "Alf" star Max Wright (1943-2019). The actor who played family patriarch Willie Tanner died after a long battle with cancer at the age of 75. After his success as Willie Tanner, he appeared in other television productions, such as "Friends" (1994-1995) and "Stephen King's The Stand - The Final Battle" (1994). He was also a successful theater actor and was nominated for a Tony Award in 1998.
Alf still has cameo appearances
Even Alf himself, thirty years later, is still at home in the TV landscape. Many people breathed life into the furry alien. Paul Fusco (71), the creator of Alf and the one who operated the Alf puppet and provided its voice in the original, still does so today. The 71-year-old continues to do this, as Alf had cameo appearances in various series in recent years. In 2016, Alf was in the thriller series "Mr. Robot" alongside Rami Malek (43). In 2019, he had a role in "Young Sheldon". In the second season of the "The Big Bang Theory" spin-off, Alf receives a fan letter from Sheldon's sister Missy (Raegan Revord, 16). Alf's last appearance in "The Simpsons" in 2023 also featured Fusco's voice.
In the German synchronization, Alf was voiced by Tommi Piper (83) in both the sitcom as well as his appearances in "Young Sheldon" and "Mr. Robot". Piper is active as a voice actor and actor. However, he had disputes with Alf. In an interview with the "Stern" in 2001, he stated that Alf caused him more harm than good. "Alf haunts me forever", said Piper. In 2019, he went to the Jungle Camp.
At one point, Alf was also portrayed by the little person actor Michu Meszaros (1939-2016), who passed away in 2016 at the age of 76.
- Following the passing of Benji Gregory, Brian Tanner's on-screen brother in "Alf," Brian Tanner's real-life sister, Lynn Tanner, is currently a Yoga Instructor in California.
- Max Wright's death in 2019, at the age of 75, after a long battle with cancer, was mourned by fans who knew him as the patriarch, Willie Tanner, in the popular sitcom "Alf."
- Alf, the alien from Planet Melmac, continues to make cameo appearances in various series, with Paul Fusco, the creator and voice of Alf, still providing the voice in these appearances.
- In an interview with the "Stern" in 2001, Tommi Piper, the German voice actor for Alf, expressed that Alf had caused him more harm than good, despite voicing the alien character in both the original sitcom and subsequent appearances.
- Willie Tanner's on-screen family also included children, with Benji Gregory playing one of the children, Brian Tanner. Gregory, who passed away in 2024, was only 46 years old.
