ALF

ALF, an acronym for Alien Life Form, was the name of an NBC sitcom, which ran from 1986 until 1990, and of its title character. ALF was a wise-cracking, cat-eating puppet alien, stranded on Earth. In 1987, he received a spin-off, an animated series based on the character's life on his home planet of Melmac, under his given name of Gordon Shumway. A second series, Alf Tales, followed in 1989, adapting fairy tales and classic literature featuring the alien characters. The puppet version would later be revived, in the 1996 TV movie Project: ALF and the 2004 TV Land series Alf's Hit Talk Show.

Appearances
ALF appeared with the Muppet Babies in the 1990 animated television special Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue. Amongst other contributions, ALF threatened to eat Garfield and startled Baby Gonzo by demolishing the Berlin Wall.

Muppet Mentions
In the first episode of the live-action series, which aired on September 22, 1986, Alf and young Brian Tanner are watching Sesame Street; a variation of "One of These Things" can be heard. ALF is rather critical of the series.


 * Brian: Do you get ''Sesame Street where you live?
 * ALF: No, and frankly I don't get it here either.
 * TV Voice: If you said it was the cow riding on the subway, you're absolutely right!
 * ALF: Brilliant. This and the letter I in one day.

Connections
Several crew members and a few performers associated with the Muppets and Henson worked on the series and it's spin-offs.


 * Bernie Brillstein was executive producer
 * Lisa Buckley puppeteered on the series, credited as "personal assistant to ALF"
 * Paul Dooley played Whizzer in three episodes
 * Paulina Gillis voiced Augie and Rhoda on the animated ALF and ALFTales.
 * John Lovelady was technical supervisor
 * Anne Meara played Dorothy Halligan in seven episodes
 * Thad Mumford served as creative consultant
 * Stephen Ouimette provided additional voices on the animated ALF and ALFTales
 * Tom Patchett was co-creator, producer, writer, and director
 * John Stocker provided additional
 * Thick Wilson voiced dad Bob Shumway and Larson Petty on the animated ALF and ALFTales.