Child actor Benji Gregory, who played son Brian on ALF, passed away in June from what the family says was “vehicular heatstroke.”
Benji Gregory, who played son Brian Tanner on sitcom ALF, has passed away. While no official cause of death has been released, a family member told TMZ that the actor was found in his car on June 13th.
The same family member posted on Facebook this week, just shy of one month since Benji Gregory was found. The heartbreaking post reads: “It is with a heavy heart my family has suffered a loss way too early. 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. 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.”
Benji Gregory had a handful of one-off television credits before landing ALF, including The A-Team, T.J. Hooker and Punky Brewster. Following ALF going off the air in 1990, Gregory had very few credits, although he did appear on an episode of Murphy Brown and lend his voice to the Back to the Future animated series, playing Biff Jr. Later in life, Benji Gregory joined the Navy. In 2005, he received an honorable medical discharge.
But it will always be ALF that Benji Gregory is best remembered for, playing eventual companion to the adopted alien. Really, Gregory and the puppet had some terrific chemistry that helped make the show work on that level.
As per TMZ, Benji Gregory also “suffered from depression, bipolar disorder and had a sleep disorder that often kept him awake for days.”
While the series of events is unofficial, the signs and words from his sister are simply tragic. We here at JoBlo.com want to extend our condolences to the family of the late Benji Gregory and hope you do the same in the comments below.