The cause of death has been revealed for former ALF child star Benji Gregory. The actor was found dead in his car at a Chase Bank parking lot in Peoria, Arizona, on June 13, along with his service dog Hans.
The Maricopa County Medical Examiner determined Gregory died from heat exposure in the setting of hepatic cirrhosis. His death was ruled accidental.
Gregory played middle son Brian Tanner on more than 100 episodes of ALF, which aired from 1986-90. It followed the earthly adventures of a furry alien from the planet Melmac who crashes his spaceship into the Tanners’ garage. Nicknamed ALF (for Alien Life Form) and voiced by Paul Fusco, the creature often cracked wise about human customs and was a cat lover — though not in the usual sense.
Born on May 26, 1978, in suburban Los Angeles, Gregory began his TV career at a tender age with mid-’80s guest roles on such as The A-Team, T.J. Hooker, Punky Brewster, The Twilight Zone and Steven Spielberg’s Amazing Stories.
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During ALF‘s run, he also voiced a character on Fantastic Max and later voiced Biff Tannen Jr. on the 1991-92 animated comedy series Back to the Future. He also appeared in a 1991 episode of Murphy Brown and had a small role in the Penny Marshall-directed 1986 spy comedy Jumpin’ Jack Flash, starring Whoopi Goldberg. HE also appeared in commercials for the likes of McDonald’s and others.
Gregory left entertainment in 2003 and enlisted in the U.S. Navy, later becoming an aerographer’s mate. In 2005, he received an honorable medical discharge from the Navy.
Greg Evans and Erik Pedersen contributed to this report.