From The TV IV

Family Guy (1999–2002; 2005—) is the brain child of Seth MacFarlane, a former writer for Cartoon Network original "Cartoon Cartoons" like Dexter's Laboratory, Johnny Bravo and Cow and Chicken. The series debuted in 1999 and helped revitalize FOX's animation line-up along with Futurama, which premiered two months later. Family Guy was met with disgust and critical appeal, not to mention a huge cult following.

Family Guy, like Futurama, was also plagued by the fickle minds of FOX executives. The show suffered from constant timeslot changes and was cancelled no less than three times due to its racy and politically incorrect nature. The controversy of the show often made executives nervous and went as far as censoring the DVD collections that were released following the show's demise.

Family Guy lacks an overall plotline or any sign of continuity (this has been compared to being like The Simpsons; however, The Simpsons does make an attempt to maintain continuity). The series centers around a family from Quahog, Rhode Island. Peter, Lois, Chris, Meg, Stewie and Brian represent the most dysfunctional a family can be, often getting into crazy events while still coping with something that resembles a life we can all relate to.

Although the series was cancelled in 2002, it was rescued from limbo by Adult Swim. The explosive ratings that the reruns received coupled with record breaking DVD sales caused FOX to pick the show up again for a new season in 2005, a first in the television industry.

Contents 1 Cast 2 Seasons 3 In-Depth 4 DVD Releases 5 External Sites

[edit] Cast

Actor	Character	Duration
Billed Cast
Seth MacFarlane	Peter Löwenbräu Griffin	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
	Stewart Gilligan "Stewie" Griffin	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
	Brian Griffin	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
	Glen Quagmire	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
	Tom Tucker	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
Alex Borstein	Lois Griffin	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
	Loretta Brown	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
	Tricia Takanawa	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
Lacey Chabert	Megan "Meg" Griffin	1	2
Mila Kunis			2	3	4	5	6	7
Seth Green	Christopher Cross "Chris" Griffin	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
	Neil Goldman		2	3	4	5	6	7
Mike Henry	Cleveland Brown	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
Supporting/Recurring Cast
Patrick Warburton	Joseph "Joe" Swanson	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
Jennifer Tilly	Bonnie Swanson	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
Lori Alan	Diane Simmons	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
Adam West	Mayor Adam West		2	3	4	5	6	7
Johnny Brennan	Mort Goldman			3	4	5	6	7

[edit] Seasons

Season	Premiere	Finale	#
FOX
Season One	January 31, 1999	May 16, 1999	7
Season Two	September 23, 1999	August 1, 2000	21
Season Three	July 11, 2001	February 14, 2002	22
Season Four	May 1, 2005	May 21, 2006	30
Season Five	September 10, 2006	May 20, 2007	18
Season Six	September 23, 2007	May 4, 2008	13 + 1
Season Seven	September 28, 2008	May 17, 2009	16
Season Eight	September 27, 2009	—	22

[edit] In-Depth

• At a Glance: Additional information about the series
• Characters: A listing of recurring characters from the series

[edit] DVD Releases

Title	Release Date	#
Episode Collections - Sequential
Volume 1	April 15, 2003	4	purchase
Volume 2	September 9, 2003	3	purchase
Volume 3	November 29, 2005	3	purchase
Volume 4	November 14, 2006	3	purchase
Volume 5	September 18, 2007	3	purchase
Volume 6	October 26, 2008	3	purchase
Volume 7	June 16, 2009	3	purchase
Multi-Volume Collections
Freakin' Party Pack	October 30, 2007	17	purchase
Freakin' Sweet Party Pack	October 21, 2008	22	purchase
The Total World Domination Collection	October 21, 2008	22	purchase
'Best Of' Collections
Freakin' Sweet Collection	December 14, 2004	1	purchase
Individual Episodes
Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story	September 27, 2005	1	purchase
Family Guy Presents: Blue Harvest	January 15, 2008	1	purchase
Family Guy Presents: Blue Harvest: Special Edition	January 15, 2008	1	purchase
A Very Special Family Guy Freakin' Christmas Only available at TWEC stores	September 26, 2008	1
Family Guy Presents: Stewie Kills Lois and Lois Kills Stewie	May 19, 2009 (TWEC stores) June 16, 2009 (Canada)	1	purchase

[edit] External Sites

• Official website for Family Guy
• Family Guy Episodes, TV Listings, News, Photos and More at TVGuide.com
• Family Guy at the Internet Movie Database