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Death Has a Shadow

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"Death Has a Shadow"

"Death Has a Shadow" is the first episode of the animated series Family Guy. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States after Super Bowl XXXIII on January 31, 1999. The episode is based on series creator Seth MacFarlane's original pitch to Fox, Life of Larry, and is a remake of the original Family Guy pilot. In the episode, Peter loses his job after drinking too much at a stag party and falls asleep at work. He then signs on to welfare to keep his wife Lois from finding out, but gets more money than he expected. Eventually, Lois finds out and Peter decides to dump the money from a blimp at the Super Bowl. He is arrested, and must await his family's rescue.

The series premiere was written by Seth MacFarlane and directed by Peter Shin. The episode received generally positive reviews from television critics. It was viewed by approximately 22.01 million homes in its original airing.

Plot summary

When Peter is invited to a stag party at Quagmire's house, Lois makes him promise not to drink. Peter completely ignores this and gets incredibly drunk at the party, falling asleep on the kitchen table. Lois is very upset, but decides to forgive Peter, since nothing bad happened. However, Peter falls asleep on the job at the Happy-Go-Lucky Toy Factory the next morning, leading to the release of many highly dangerous "toys" (axes, jackknives, toasters, hazardous pills), and Peter is subsequently fired for negligence. Realizing that he would only hurt his wife again if he were to tell her of his unemployment, Peter decides not to let Lois know. After Brian tells him to think of his family's well being, he applies for welfare instead. He is shocked to find that his first welfare check is for $150,000, due to a misplaced decimal point.

With his new fortune, Peter begins to buy lavish gifts for his family, such as Michelangelo's David, a moat, and a ski boat. At the same time, Peter attempts to keep Meg and Chris, who have found out that Peter is now unemployed, from telling Lois what has happened. Later that day, Lois finds out after she directly receives a new welfare check in the mail. With Lois once again upset with him, Peter decides that he will make it up to her by dropping all of his extra welfare money out of a blimp above Super Bowl XXXIII (complete with a parody of the NFL on Fox main theme music).

Despite his good intentions, Peter is arrested by security guards called by John Madden (after the blimp is shot down by the guards with a "just one" gun) and prosecuted for welfare fraud, along with Brian. Realizing he does care for Lois and his family, Lois makes a passionate plea to the judge to forgive her husband, but only succeeds in convincing the judge that she should join him in jail. After being hypnotized by Stewie's mind control device, the judge sees Stewie in the courtroom, and decides that he can not send Peter or Lois to prison because it would leave Stewie without the protection of his parents. Using the mind control device, Stewie forces the judge to reinstate Peter at the Happy-Go-Lucky toy factory. The episode ends with things returning back to normal, with Peter thinking about new ways to make money, supporting the idea that Peter never learned his lesson.[1][2]

Development

Origin of Family Guy

Main article: Larry shorts

Seth MacFarlane conceived the idea for the Family Guy in 1996, while he was studying animation under the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD).[3] During college, he created his thesis film entitled The Life of Larry.[3] His professor at RISD submitted MacFarlane's cartoon to Hanna-Barbera, where he was later hired.[4] The same year MacFarlane created a sequel to The Life of Larry called Larry and Steve, which featured a middle-aged character named Larry and an intellectual dog, Steve. The short was broadcast as one of Cartoon Network's World Premiere Toons. Executives at Fox saw both Larry shorts and contracted MacFarlane to create a series based on the characters, to be called Family Guy.[5]

Fox proposed MacFarlane complete a 15-minute short, giving him a budget of $50,000.[6] MacFarlane stated that the pilot for Family Guy took half a year to create and produce.[4] Recalling the experience in an interview with The New York Times, MacFarlane stated, "I spent about six months with no sleep and no life, just drawing like crazy in my kitchen and doing this pilot".[7] Upon completion of the pilot, the series went on the air.[8] At 24, MacFarlane was television's youngest executive producer.[9]

Casting

The Family Guy cast consists of five main voice actors, Seth MacFarlane (Peter, Brian, Stewie Quagmire, among others), Alex Borstein (Lois, Loretta Brown, Tricia Takanawa, Barbara Pewterschmidt, among others), Seth Green (Chris, Neil Goldman, among others), Mila Kunis (Meg) and Mike Henry (Cleveland Brown, Herbert, among others).

A man with black hair and a black shirt, leans forward slightly to speak into a microphone.
Seth MacFarlane, Family Guy creator.

Seth MacFarlane provides the voice of three of the show's main characters, Peter Griffin, Brian Griffin and Stewie Griffin.[10] MacFarlane has stated that he already knew how the voices of the three characters would sound, and that it was easier to provide the voices himself.[11] Peter's voice is inspired by the voice of a security guard MacFarlane overheard talking while attending the Rhode Island School of Design.[12] Stewie's voice was based on the voice of English actor Rex Harrison,[13] particularly Harrison's performance in the film My Fair Lady.[14] Brian's voice is MacFarlane's regular speaking voice.[11] In addition, MacFarlane provides the voice of various recurring and one-time characters, most prominently Glenn Quagmire, news anchor Tom Tucker and Lois's father, Carter Pewterschmidt.[15][16]

Actress and comedian, most notably on the series MADtv, Alex Borstein voices Lois Griffin, Asian correspondent Tricia Takanawa, Loretta Brown and Lois' mother Barbara Pewterschmidt.[17] Borstein was asked to provide a voice for the pilot when she was still a cast member on MADtv. She had not met MacFarlane, or seen any artwork of the show prior to auditioning, and said it was "really a sight unseen."[18] At the time, she was also doing a stage show in Los Angeles, in which she played a redheaded mother, whose voice she had based on one of her cousins.[17][18] The voice was originally slower and lower pitched. When MacFarlane heard the voice, he instructed Borstein to "make it a little less [...] annoying...and speed it up, or every episode will last four hours."[17]

Actor Seth Green provides the voice of Chris Griffin, the oldest son of the family. He also provides the voice of Neil Goldman, who has since made few appearances in the series.[16][19] Green has stated that in auditioning for the part of Chris, he simply did an impression of the Buffalo Bill character from the thriller film The Silence of the Lambs, which he and a friend had come up with just before his audition.[20][21]

Actress and vocal performer Lacey Chabert provided the voice Meg Griffin for the episode, and the first production season.[16] However, because of a contractual agreement, she was never credited.[22] Chabert soon left the series due to her acting role in Party of Five.[23] Actress Mila Kunis won the role after auditions, as well as for her performance on the Fox series That '70s Show, and a slight rewrite of her character.[24]

A longtime friend of MacFarlane, Mike Henry provided the voices of Cleveland Brown for the first production season and for some minor recurring characters.[25] Henry had met MacFarlane at the Rhode Island School of Design through his brother, Patrick, who was a student at the university with MacFarlane, and kept in touch with him after he graduated.[26] Before the series began production, MacFarlane contacted him about being part of the show; he agreed and became both a writer and voice actor for the show.[26]

Cultural references

The episode contains several cultural references. The family is shown in church receiving the holy communion.[1] There is a scene from the movie Philadelphia.[1] The movie that Peter and his friends are watching is a reference to the 1942 American romantic drama Casablanca.[1] The toy in the Happy-Go-Lucky Toy Factory is a parody of Hasbro's line of military-themed action figures G.I. Joe.[1] When Brian urinates on a fire hydrant it references common dog behavior in popular culture.[1] The sculpture Peter buys is Michelangelo's sculpture David.[27] The cutaway in which Adolf Hitler is seen jealous of a Jewish man is a reference of Hitler’s persecution of Jewish people.[27]

Reception

In its original airing, the episode received a total of 22.01 million viewers, attributed mostly to the large audience received by the Super Bowl, which received a rating of 40.2 million according to Nielsen Ratings.[28] Since airing, the episode has received mostly positive reviews from television critics. Ahsan Haque of IGN in a 2008 review rated the episode an 8.9/10, praising the integration of humor into the episode's storyline. Haque also noted that the episode was "a very strong start to this long running classic series, and revisiting it serves as a reminder that unlike many other television shows, there are very few awkward moments, and much of the show's brilliance is immediately apparent."[27]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Plot synopsis information for the episode "Death Has a Shadow" (DVD). 20th Century Fox. 2003. Cite error: The named reference "Episode" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  2. ^ Callaghan, Steve (2005). Family Guy: The Official Episode Guide Seasons 1-3. Harper Collins Publishers. pp. 14–17. ISBN 0-7528-7399-7.
  3. ^ a b "Seth MacFarlane - Profile". E! Online. Retrieved December 20, 2007.
  4. ^ a b "Family Guy Seth MacFarlane to speak at Class Day: Creator and executive producer of 'Family Guy' will headline undergraduate celebration. Harvard Gazette. Retrieved December 21, 2007.
  5. ^ Bartlett, James (2007-03-12). "Seth MacFarlane – he's the "Family Guy"". greatreporter.com. Presswire Limited. Retrieved 2007-12-31.  ... his company, Fuzzy Door Productions ...
  6. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (2008-05-05). ""Family Guy creator seals megadeal". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2008-05-31. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  7. ^ Weinraub, Bernard (2007-07-07). "The Young Guy Of 'Family Guy'; A 30-Year-Old's Cartoon Hit Makes An Unexpected Comeback". The New York Times. The New York Times Company. p. 2. Retrieved 2008-01-06. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  8. ^ "Inside Media at MTR (2006): Family Guy 2". Yahoo! Video. Retrieved August 24, 2009.
  9. ^ Levin, Gary (2005-02-02). "'Dad' joins 'Guy' for yuks". USA Today. Gannett Co. Inc. Retrieved 2007-12-21. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  10. ^ Graham, Jefferson (January 29, 1999). "Cartoonist MacFarlane funny guy of Fox's 'Family' Subversive voice of series is his". USA Today. p. E7.
  11. ^ a b Cruz, Gilbert (September 26, 2008). "Family Guy's Seth MacFarlane". TIME. Retrieved August 28, 2009.
  12. ^ Smith, Andy (April 30, 2005). "A Real Family Reunion". Providence Journal TV. Retrieved August 28, 2009.
  13. ^ Dean, John (November 1, 2008). "Seth MacFarlane's $2 Billion Family Guy Empire". Fox Business. Retrieved August 24, 2009.
  14. ^ Franklin, Nancy (January 16, 2006). "American Idiots". The New Yorker.
  15. ^ "Family Guy - Seth MacFarlane interview". garge tv. Retrieved October 3, 2009.
  16. ^ a b c "Family Guy Cast and Details". TV Guide. Retrieved August 24, 2009. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  17. ^ a b c Miller, Kirk (November 19, 2008). "Q&A: Alex Borstein". Metromix. Retrieved August 28, 2009.
  18. ^ a b "Alex Borstein (Lois) Laughs at the Once-Dead Family Guy's Longevity". TV Guide. November&nbsp13, 2006. Retrieved August 24, 2009. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
  19. ^ Graham, Jefferson (April 9, 1999). "Seth Green fits right in with new Family". USA Today. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
  20. ^ "Fans help 'Family Guy' return to Fox". Observer-Reporter. April 29, 2005. p. E5.
  21. ^ Green, Seth. Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story: Audio Commentary (DVD). {{cite AV media}}: Unknown parameter |date2= ignored (help)
  22. ^ Epstein, Daniel Robert. "Interview with Seth MacFarlane, creator of The Family Guy". UGO Networks. Retrieved November 23, 2008. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  23. ^ "Sonic the Horndog". Gamespy. Retrieved 2009-10-03.
  24. ^ "Inside Media at MTR (2006): Family Guy 7". Yahoo! Video. Retrieved August 24, 2009. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  25. ^ "Behind the scenes of 'Family Guy' *** Character 'voice' star to speak". The Advocate. November 19, 2006. excerpt
  26. ^ a b "Mike Henry of "Family Guy" talks voices, gags and instinct". Campus Times. September 11, 2008. Retrieved September 8, 2009.
  27. ^ a b c Haque, Ashan (2008). "Family Guy Flashback: "Death Has a Shadow" Review". IGN. Retrieved 2009-09-14.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  28. ^ "Post-Super Bowl Ratings". Retrieved January 8, 2009.
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