Benji Gregory, former child star on the '80s sitcom 'ALF,' dies at 46

Actor Max Wright, actress Andrea Elson, actress Anne Schedeen and actor Benji Gregory attend the NBC Television Affiliates Party on June 2, 1987, at Century Plaza Hotel in Century City, Calif. (Photo by Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)

PHOENIX -

Former child actor Benji Gregory, who played the young boy on the 1980s television sitcom "ALF," has died in suburban Phoenix. He was 46.

Gregory, whose legal name was Benjamin Gregory Hertzberg, died on June 13, according to records from the Maricopa County Office of the Medical Examiner. The cause of his death is pending.

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Gregory's sister, Rebecca Pfaffinger, told The New York Times that her brother's body was found in his car in the parking lot of a bank in Peoria, outside Phoenix. He apparently had gone there to deposit some residual cheques, she said. His dog Hans also died in the vehicle.

Because the cause of death is still being investigated, it is unknown whether Arizona's summer heat played a role. The high temperature in metro Phoenix hit 108 F (42.2 C) the day of Gregory's death, according to National Weather Service records.

Gregory was eight when he gained fame playing Brian Tanner on the NBC show about a family that took in "ALF" -- a hairy alien life form -- after the creature's spaceship crashed. He also appeared in commercials and other TV shows, including "The A-Team" and "Fantasy Island."

As an adult, Gregory enlisted in the U.S. navy and became an aerographer's mate, tracking the weather for aviation and nautical safety, according to the entertainment database IMDb.

There was no word on additional survivors or a memorial service.