Michu Meszaros, the circus star who played Gordon “ALF” Shumway (when he was standing or running), has passed away at 76.
Mihaly “Michu” Meszaros was a Hungarian performer, a “little person,” best remembered as a performer with Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus and the man behind the costume in the NBC sitcom ALF. He is 2 feet 9 inches (84 cm) tall.
Meszaros appeared in numerous television and film projects. His last appearance was in 2015’s Death to Cupid.
For the first few seasons of ALF, Meszaros donned a full-body costume of the character whenever a full-body shot of the alien was needed. Meszaros was used where scenes of ALF walking, running, or standing were required.
Most shots were half-body shots of ALF’s upper body since the ALF costume was extremely hot and uncomfortable for the actor to wear under the bright studio lights and during long stretches. The ALF puppet and costume can be distinguished on first view because the head proportions are slightly different. Meszaros performed as ALF for 11 episodes, but he is featured in the opening credits of the first two seasons.
Michu also was a member of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus as the former “smallest man in the world”. As a youngster, he attended a state-run school of circus arts, becoming well-versed in many and varied performing skills. For many years, Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus producers Irvin Feld and Kenneth Feld had heard of the existence, somewhere in Hungary, of a man almost too small to believe. The Producers finally located him in 1973; they were astonished at his size – and talents. Arrangements were made immediately to bring him to the Circus.
While with Ringling Brothers & Barnum and Bailey Circus as a featured performer, Michu trained and presented a dog act with white Standard Poodles who, when on their hind-legs, were much taller than their diminutive but commanding trainer. This made for a wonderful display, which was much-loved by audiences nationwide. The grand Spectacle number, or “spec” as it is known to the performing artists, featured the Smallest Man in the World in a dignified, though slightly comedic, role. Michu portrayed the “Marshal of Marshmallow Gulch” in the Spectacle number in 1982/1983, resplendent in a well-tailored white/silver/gold costume encrusted all over with rhinestones, complete with matching cowboy hat and silver boots.
In the 1980s the city of Hawthorne, California named their shortest street in the City “Michu Lane”.
On June 12, 2016, it was announced Michu was in a comatose state in a Los Angeles hospital, after he was discovered on his bathroom floor by his manager Dennis Varga. He had suffered numerous health issues since a stroke eight years ago. On June 13, 2016, he died at the age of 76.
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