Family Guy Return, American Dad Debut

Fox Broadcasting Co., has many May 1, 2005, animation treats in store for primetime viewers with the return of FAMILY GUY at 9:00 pm, debut of the AMERICAN DAD series, airing at 9:30 pm and 350th episode of THE SIMPSONS at 8:00 pm.

Seth McFarlane’s FAMILY GUY is back by popular demand with all-new twisted and irreverently outrageous trials and tribulations of Peter Griffin (MacFarlane) and his not-quite-so-average family of middle-class New Englanders. His loving wife Lois (Alex Borstein) struggles to maintain a modicum of normalcy in their home life. Angst-ridden, 16-year-old Meg (Mila Kunis); 13-year-old Chris (Seth Green), a sweet-natured slacker; Stewie (MacFarlane), a diabolically clever baby bent on world domination and Brian (MacFarlane), the brainy family pooch who likes his martinis dry with the wit to match.

Since its debut in 1999, the Emmy-nominated animated series has a loyal following of devoted fans and has sold more than 3.5 million combined DVD units, making it the fourth-largest TV series seller ever.

FAMILY GUY is a 20th Century Fox Television production. MacFarlane is creator/exec producer with David A. Goodman as exec producer/showrunner, and Chris Sheridan as exec producer.

Seth McFarlane’s AMERICAN DAD, which gets a sneak preview airing after the Super Bowl XXXIX Feb. 6, on FOX, begins the weekly half-hour adventures of Stan Smith (MacFarlane), a CIA agent based in Langley Falls, Virginia, trying to protect his country against terrorist and is a proud family man. Stan’s wife is the sweet, Edith Bunker-esque FRANCINE (Wendy Schaal), who hides her party-girl personality for the sake of the conservative man she married. Stan butts heads with his ultra-liberal, 18-year-old daughter, Hayley (Rachael MacFarlane), who is forced to go through an airport-style security check every time she comes home from a day of Women’s Studies classes at the local community college.

Hayley’s 13-year-old brother Steve (Scott Grimes) is a geeky a kid who seems to be on the verge of puberty, but caught in its squeaky awkwardness. Unconventional members of the household are Roger (Seth MacFarlane), the sarcastic space alien Stan rescued from Area 51 who lives in the Smiths’ attic; and Klaus (Dee Bradley Baker), a lascivious, German-speaking goldfish – the result of a CIA experiment gone seriously wrong.

This eccentric family is just trying to find a way to love and trust each other during these increasingly stressful times while Stan tries his best to make America safer.

In THE SIMPSONS milestone 350th episode, “The Heartbroke Kid,” Bart becomes addicted to junk food when a new vending machine is installed at Springfield Elementary, leading to a massive weight gain and health issues. Unable to stick to his prescribed low-fat diet, the Simpsons stage an intervention and ship Bart off to “Serenity Ranch – A Forced Starvation Facility,” headed up by former food addict Tab Spangler (guest star Albert Brooks). As Bart tries to overcome his obsession, Homer and Marge turn their home into a hostel for German travelers in order to pay for the costly Serenity Ranch.

THE SIMPSONS is the longest-running animated primetime series in history and the longest-running comedy currently on television. Now in its 16th season, THE SIMPSONS has won critical praise and numerous honors, including a Peabody Award, 21 Emmy Awards, 21 Annie Awards, three Genesis Awards, eight International Monitor Awards and five Environmental Media Awards.

THE SIMPSONS currently holds the GUINNESS BOOK OF WORLD RECORDS titles for “Longest-running Primetime Animated Series” and “Most Celebrities Featured in an Animation Series.” Recognized as a pop culture icon, Homer Simpson’s annoyed grunt – “D’oh!” – was added as an official word in the 2001 edition of the Oxford Dictionary.