ALF (1986–1990)

A furry alien wiseguy comes to live with a terran family after crashing into their garage.

Creators:

Paul Fusco, Tom Patchett

Stars:

Max Wright, Anne Schedeen, Andrea Elson

4 wins & 13 nominations.

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
Max Wright	...	Willie Tanner (101 episodes, 1986-1990)
Anne Schedeen	...	Kate Tanner (101 episodes, 1986-1990)
Andrea Elson	...	Lynn Tanner (101 episodes, 1986-1990)
Benji Gregory	...	Brian Tanner (101 episodes, 1986-1990)

Storyline

The Tanner family is an average American family. One day, they discover that they have a visitor. He's small, he's furry, he's arrogant, and he's an alien from the planet Melmac. Unsure what to do, they name him ALF: Alien Life Form. Alf soon decides that as much as he misses his home planet, there's a lot to be said for Earth: the Tanners are willing to concede anything as long as he doesn't announce his presence. Oh yeah, the the Tanners also have a cat, which looks rather tasty...

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Plot Keywords:

alien | cat | hiding | blind woman | sitcom | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Family | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

TV-G

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 September 1986 (USA)

Also Known As:

ALF, o Eteimoso

Filming Locations:

USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Alien Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min 25 min (100 episodes) 30 min (102 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

4:3

Did You Know?

Trivia

Series creator Paul Fusco told the cast and crew not to give away the secrets to ALF. Fusco operated the puppet most of the time, and provided the voice. However, when full body shots were needed, actor Mihaly 'Michu' Meszaros, who stood only two feet and nine inches tall, wore an ALF costume.

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Goofs

In the Halloween episode of season 2, A black strip of tape disappears and reappears on ALF's chest

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Quotes

Willie: Well, ALF, while we're gone, I trust you won't be getting into any mischief.
ALF: You do?
Willie: Not really, but we gotta go.

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Connections

Referenced in The Nostalgia Critic: Signs (2012)

User Reviews

When I was a kid, this was the sit-com to watch.

ALF is another one of the favorite shows during my childhood. And I still enjoy it to this day. Every friend and acquaintance of mine loved this show. Some kids I knew back then wished ALF would've crashed into their garage! ALF has left some very fond memories. Short synopsis: One day the Tanner family was in their garage they hear a strange noise and it was a spaceship that eventually crashed into their garage and then discover ALF and he became a part of the family.

ALF was also a bit of a troublemaker and a prankster as well. Yet, he also tried to fix any damage he had done, gave advice to the Tanners, said some funny catchphrases, got into funny situations one can imagine, always had to hide in the kitchen whenever company came, chasing Lucky (the Tanner's cat, ALF had a taste for cats), and used references from historic events and the whatnot. ALF even had some heartfelt moments, too.

Plus, I heard that starting in March, NICK-AT-NITE is going to start showing old reruns of ALF! Another thing, too the kids in this show, Lynn and Brian acted like your everyday average kid and teen! Even though the show barely revolved around them, they weren't even smart-allecks like kids are in sit-coms nowadays. ALF was one of the better sit-coms from the 80's. It's another one of my favorites next to Night Court and Newhart. Feel free to watch the ALF reruns when they come to NICK-AT-NITE. ALF was a show for the whole family. It gets an A!