Alvin was a member of the scientific expedition at the experimental colony on Gamma Hydra IV during the 2260s. He was under the age of thirty at the time of his posting to the colony.
His dead body was discovered by Pavel Chekov in 2267 following the USS Enterprise's arrival at the planet for a scheduled mission to re-supply and yearly checkup. The sight of Alvin's corpse frightened Chekov enough to trigger a sufficient amount of adrenaline in his system to make him immune to the effects of the aging disease that killed the expedition and threatened the rest of the landing party.
Upon noticing the Enterprise landing party, Robert Johnson guessed that they had come to pay their respects to Alvin. (TOS: "The Deadly Years")
Alvin was portrayed by an unknown actor.
According to the final draft of the script, dated both 27 July 1967 and 31 July 1967, it was stated that "The body in the coffin is incredibly old... an old, old Sam Jaffee [sic] as he was in "Lost Horizon"."