I didn’t think ALF had that much of an impact back in the late ’80s when it aired. A show about a fuzzy alien who hides out with a family of four in the suburbs seemed rather goofy. Could it really have the make the same impression as more lofty sitcoms from the late ’80s? During the early ’90s, my pal Iain went on a trip of Europe and ended up Vienna. There in a city that was the home of Mozart and Falco, he spotted cafe named ALF. Was this joint named after someone named Alfred? Nope. This was a place dedicated to the most famous citizen of Melmac. The walls were full of ALF memorabilia. It’ was like a Kenny Rogers’ Roasted Chicken joint except all about ALF. I was expecting stories of restaurants dedicated to David Hasselhoff since Eastern Europeans were crazy about him. But it was ALF that received the fanatic devotion of his own themed eatery. Somehow with this piece of news, I found myself reconsidering ALF. Could this series be deeper than just jokes about an alien that wants to eat house cats? Could ALF be as prestigious as the major programs on NBC’s “Must See TV” lineup? I’ve been able to revisit the show with the arrival of ALF: The Complete Series (Deluxe Edition) and get deeper into the ALF mythology that conquered Austrians and beyond.
ALF lasted four seasons from the Fall of 1986 to the Spring of 1990. Unlike a lot of shows of that time, the series has a beginning and somewhat of an ending. “A.L.F.” launches the sitcom by introducing us to the happy Tanner family. Father Willie (Buffalo Bill‘s Max Wright), mother Kate (Three’s Company‘s Anne Schedeen), daughter Lynn (Whiz Kids‘ Andrea Elson) and son Brian (Punky Brewster‘s Benji Gregory) live in the San Fernando Valley with a converted garage that is used for a HAM radio set up. One night they begin talking with a stranger which leads to an unexpected guest. An alien’s spaceship has crashed into the roof. Willie names the creature A.L.F. for Alien Life Form. He realizes that they have to keep their new friend a bit of a secret. He fears a visit from the military’s Alien Task Force. Willie does his best to keep his nosey neighbors Trevor and Raquel Ochmonek (John La Motta and Seinfeld‘s Liz Sheridan) from peeping through the windows. ALF isn’t great at keeping a low profile. During “Pennsylvania 6-5000,” ALF calls up the president to warn him how his planet Melmac was destroyed by nuclear weapons. He insists the Earth must disarm before it is too late. However, the message is garbled, and the President’s security fear ALF is a terrorist. They send investigators to the Tanners’ house to capture the threat. The episode feature Richard Sanders (Les Nesman from WKRP In Cincinnati), Meshach Taylor and the voice of Harry Shearer (The Simpsons).
There were quite a few big-name guest stars that wanted to rub the fuzzy shoulders of ALF. Super Bowl legend Joe Namath appears as himself in “Jump” just like he did on The Brady Bunch. “Going Out of My Head Over You” has a Bob Newhart Show reunion of Bill Daily and Jack Riley. A few episodes later we get “It’s Not Easy Bein’ Green” with not only Bob’s receptionist Marcia Wallace, Peter Bonerz (Jerry the Dentist) directed the episode (as he did may other ALFs). “Somewhere Over the Rerun/The Ballad of Gilligan’s Island” reunites Gilligan (Bob Denver), The Skipper (Alan Hale, Jr.), The Professor (Russell Johnson) and Mary Ann (Dawn Wells). “Something’s Wrong With Me” has Paul Dooley (Breaking Away) in a wedding that ALF’s ruining with his hiccups. “Night Train” delivers Tracey Walter (Repo Man). “ALF’s Special Christmas” takes him to a hospital where he encounters Cleavon Litte (Blazing Saddles) and Carl Franklin (director of One False Move). “We’re So Sorry, Uncle Albert” make ALF a Noir with the arrival of Elisa Cook (The Big Sleep). “Tonight, Tonight” is a clip show with ALF acting as Johnny Carson. They landed producer Frederick de Cordova and backup band leader Tommy Newsom along with regulars Rich Little, Joan Embrey and Joyce Brothers to make it feel real. “Promises, Promises” has Lynn dating Michael Des Barres (from Scum of the Earth on WKRP). “Make ‘Em Laugh” has ALF doing stand up with David Spade and Casey Kasem. “Future’s So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades” gives us Fran Drescher before her time as The Nanny.
The finale of Season Four ends on a cliff hanger with the Alien Task Force closing on ALF and the Tanners. It was a bit of a shock that the show wasn’t renewed for a fifth season. ALF was in the Top 10 during season 2 and was ranked 13 in the third. The fourth season saw a slump that dropped it to 39 which was middle of the pack. The show still had around 15 million viewers an episode. A most recent TV ratings had the top show being Sunday Night Football with 19 million viewers and the highest rated sitcom is Young Sheldon with barely 9 million viewers. NBC swapped out ALF with Fresh Prince of Bel Air. The Will Smith sitcom never averaged over 15 million. The cliffhanger did get resolved on the Project: ALF TV movie that’s included here as a bonus feature.
At the time when ALF was airing, I had no idea that Michu Meszaros was inside the full-size ALF uniform during the first season. He was only two feet and nine inches tall. For years Michu was part of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum Bailey Circus as the World’s Smallest Man. His wedding to Juliana was the highlight of the tour in 1977. I would have watched the show more often if I knew Michu was part of the cast.
While ALF ran on Monday nights, the fuzzy star was also waking up early on Saturday morning. ALF: The Animated Series gave us a look at what his life was like on Melmac before he left for Earth. They avoid talking about the impending Nuclear Apocalypse. The series ran for 26 episodes from Fall of ’87 to winter of ’89. The shows have the puppet ALF introduce his animated action. He’s not called ALF on Melmac. They use his real name which I won’t disclose here. NBC doubled up on the fun when they produced ALF Tales in the Fall of ’88. This was a fully animated show with ALF revisiting odd fairytales. It lasted 21 episodes ended just before the regular series ended. During the Fall of ’88, you could have had three ALFs in your life.
ALF: The Complete Series (Deluxe Edition) gives all the joy that was ALF at the end of the ’80s. Rewatching episodes, the sitcom was a bit more pointy than I remembered. While nearly all of the episodes are the original broadcast length, “Try to Remember” is the censored version. When it was originally broadcast, the show had ALF electrocute himself by using an electric mixer in the bathtub to create a whirlpool. The network realized there were a lot of little kids watching the show, so they redid the scene. ALF merely slipped and hits his head in the bathroom to cause his memory loss. The second version was used in reruns and the syndicated version of the show. That’s also what’s on the DVD since we don’t need kids creating the ALF Whirlpool TikTok Challenge. As ALF constantly observed, humans are capable of doing the stupidest things.
There are three different versions of the boxset being offered by Shout! Studios. The first is just the DVD boxset.
ALF: The Complete Series (Deluxe Edition) + Poster + Prism Sticker + Vinyl
ALF: The Complete Series (Deluxe Edition) + Poster + Prism Sticker + Vinyl + Enamel Pins + Lunch Box + Melmac Rock is for the extreme ALF fan that might live and dine in Vienna.
The Video is 1.33:1 full frame. While the show was shot on 35mm, this was the era where they would just transfer it all to videotape to save on post-production costs. Things look ok on DVD even with a little fuzziness. The Audio is Dolby Digital Stereo. The episodes are subtitled.
Project: ALF (91:16) is the “finale TV movie that aired February 17, 1996 on ABC. ALF is being kept a prisoner by the Edmonds Air Force Base. While the military scientists attempt various examinations, ALF cuts them up with his goofy jokes. It’s a reverse Alien Autopsy. He also enjoys being there since he gets his guards into endless Poker games and runs a black-market racket that includes videos of movies still in the theater. He’s like a modern Sgt. Bilko without the stripes. He doesn’t miss hiding out at the Tanner house. The only bad experience is when a scientist had an accident during their session. There is one person wants to put an end to the experiments. The Head of Security Colonel Gilbert Milfoil (Apocalypse Now‘s Martin Sheen) has had it with ALF. He’s willing to disobey orders and snuff the fuzzy alien into the ground. Scientists Major Melissa Hill (Home Improvement‘s Jensen Daggett) and Captain Rick Mullican (Bull Durham‘s William O’Leary) get alerted to the fatal orders and disobey the Colonel. They sneak ALF off the base. They hope that Dexter Moyers (Robocop’s Miguel Ferrar) an ex-NASA scientist can help them save ALF. But does Dexter also have a sinister scheme in mind for the visitor? The video is 1.78:1 anamorphic.
A Look Back At ALF (34:16) has Paul Fusco and Tom Patchett discuss the show. They wanted ALF to be a critic of human behavior who finds it all so ridiculous. Patchett had made the puppet of ALF first and used it to annoy his wife. He talks about how many people he had to meet with to finally find a producer in Tom Patchett including Buffalo Bill. They take us into the NBC pitch meeting and how ALF landed the deal by picking his nose. They get into how the show was made and the Saturday morning cartoon version of the show. They discuss the time when ALF visited the Reagan White House.
ALF On ALF: Audio Commentaries with ALF (Paul Fusco doing his voice) and Tom Patchett. These are episodes are “A.L.F.,” “La Cucaracha,” “Working My Way Back To You” and “Some Enchanted Evening.” There’s also pop-up graphics with more jokes and a bit of insight.
Shout! Studios presents ALF: The Complete Series – Deluxe Edition. Starring Paul Fusco, Max Wright, Anne Schedeen, Andrea Elson, Benji Gregory and Michu Meszaros. Boxset Contents: 147 episodes on 25 DVDs. Release Date: October 17, 2023.
