Trivia: Animation pioneer Seth MacFarlane followed in the footsteps of Matt Groening, Trey Parker, and Matt Stone, and others by creating (at age 25!) one of the top-tiered animated series on national television. Family Guy, which debuted in 1999, preserved the sitcom-family premise of The Simpsons but upped the irreverence quotient tenfold (defying many who regarded such an accomplishment as impossible), meanwhile tossing in dozens upon dozens of off-the-cuff (and frequently risqué) references to pop culture -- citing everything from Oz to The Wizard of Oz, The $25,000 Pyramid to songs by a-ha, and thus seizing upon instant identification with Gen-X and Gen-Y viewers. Episodes, which began mundanely enough, could immediately segue, without advance notice, into music video-style montages, game-show sequences, multi-character musical production numbers, mock historical sequences, etc. The basic premise revolved around the nutty Griffin clan of Quahog, Rhode Island: obese toy manufacturer dad Peter; neurotic housewife Lois; ne'er-do-well, dim-bulb 13-year-old son Chris; the angst-ridden 16-year-old daughter Meg, and -- what really made the series bizarre and original -- Stewie, a one-year-old infant with a massive head, a genius IQ, and the verbal erudition of Rex Harrison.Family Guy found a sizeable audience and lasted for many seasons, yet reportedly suffered from a tumultuous history at Fox, where it endured repeat cancellations, numerous rerun episodes, and reemergence on different networks and in different time slots, meanwhile becoming a cult hit on DVD. In the interim, MacFarlane branched out into another animated sitcom, American Dad (2005). Family Guy eventually gained extremly solid ground, however, and soon spawned a spin-off, The Cleveland Show.

Trivia: Actress Wendy Schaal made her feature-film debut in the teen comedy Records (1978). She subsequently went on to have a sporadic film career, the highlights of which include Innerspace (1987) and The 'Burbs (1989). Though she worked steadily through the 1990s, she disappeared from screens in the 21st century, making a triumphant comeback voicing Francine Smith on the FOX animated sitcom American Dad!

Trivia: Former adolescent actor Scott Grimes first appeared onscreen at age 15 in Critters (1986).

Trivia: The younger sister of Family Guy and American Dad creator Seth MacFarlane, Rachael MacFarlane has provided a number of voices on her famous sibling's animated sitcom Family Guy, and the voice of Hayley Smith, a regular character on American Dad. Additional achievements of hers include voices for Johnny Bravo, Dexter's Laboratory, and The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy.

Trivia: American voice artist, standup comedian, and singer Dee Bradley Baker started gaining experience at age nine in all forms of theatrical production, including musical comedies, operas, and nonmusical plays. After college, Baker moved to Los Angeles and quickly established himself as a highly regarded voice actor on animated series, specials, and features. Baker demonstrated a particularly strong aptitude for various ethnic dialects, as well as animal, extraterrestrial, and monster characters. He voiced Louie in the 2000 feature The Trumpet of the Swan, contributed zombie moans to the 2004 Dawn of the Dead remake, and voiced creatures in small-screen programs such as Avatar: The Last Airbender, SpongeBob SquarePants, and Codename: Kids Next Door. Baker was also particularly memorable as Klaus, a talking fish with a massive libidinal drive, on the Seth MacFarlane animated series American Dad. In addition to his extensive film and television credits, Baker's vocal contributions to such popular video games as Left 4 Dead 2, Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II, and Diablo III helped to make him one of the busiest voice actors in Hollywood.

Trivia: American character actor Curtis Armstrong is best known in films for playing Dudley "Booger" Dawson in the Revenge of the Nerds series of feature films and TV movies. On television he is best remembered for playing Herbert Viola in the ABC series Moonlighting (1985-1989). When he was just starting out, Armstrong founded his own theater company in Michigan. He continued working in theater until 1983 when he made his film debut playing opposite Tom Cruise in Risky Business. He appeared in Revenge of the Nerds the following year. In addition to playing Booger, Armstrong appeared in other features, including The Clan of the Cave Bear (1986) and The Adventures of Huck Finn (1993). He would remain extremely active for decades to come, appearing in movies like Southland Tales and Beer for My Horses, and on shows like Boston Legal, The Closer, and Dan Vs.

Trivia: Met husband Dan O'Brien while performing improv comedy together in college. Performed at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in New York and Los Angeles. Wrote episodes of her sitcom BFF by recording herself and cowriter Lennon Parham improvising, then transcribing it later.

Trivia: Actor Eddie Kay Thomas first rose to national prominence for his work in the teen comedy hit American Pie, but Thomas' background and resumé are a good bit more varied and distinguished than that credit might lead one to expect. Eddie Kay Thomas was born in New York City on October 31, 1980, and won his first stage role at the age of seven. By the time Thomas graduated from New York's Professional Children's High School, he was already a seasoned veteran of the Broadway stage, appearing in Four Baboons Adoring the Sun in 1992 and The Diary of Anne Frank (opposite Natalie Portman) in 1997. Thomas made his screen debut in 1996, appearing in an episode of the TV series Law and Order (it was the first of three appearances on the show for Thomas), as well as landing a small role in the independent feature Illtown. In 1999, Thomas made a strong impression in the otherwise poorly received horror opus The Rage: Carrie 2, and also appeared in James Toback's controversial Black and White, but from a commercial standpoint the highlight of Thomas' year was American Pie, in which he gave a memorable comic performance as the uptight would-be continental hipster Finch. In 2000, Thomas was cast as the mischievous Russell on the WB sitcom Brutally Normal, which unfortunately lasted a mere five weeks before being canceled by network brass. The following year found Thomas back in the sitcom harness, playing Mike on the series Off Center, which was executive produced by Chris and Paul Weitz, who produced and directed American Pie. That same year, the Weitz brothers brought Thomas back to re-create the role of Finch in American Pie 2, while gross-out comic Tom Green tapped Thomas to play the title role in his first directorial effort, Freddie Got Fingered. The third chapter in the American Pie series, entitled American Wedding, was soon to follow in 2003.

Trivia: As a fresh-faced college kid, Joe Lo Truglio probably never guessed that joining the sketch comedy troupe The State would eventually lead to a successful career in TV and movies. But when the New York-based group got its own show on MTV in 1993, Lo Truglio and the group's 10 other members gained a foothold in the media that they would all build on for years to come. Drawing on influences like Monty Python and Kids in the Hall, The State's bizarre brand of comedy struck a chord with audiences, and even after the show ended its run in 1995, many members of the group would find new projects together and with up-and-coming names in comedy. Lo Truglio went on to appear in a wide variety of projects, like The Station Agent, Hitch, The Sarah Silverman Program, Pineapple Express, and Superbad. He also collaborated with his castmates from The State for a number of comedic projects, like 2001's summer camp satire Wet Hot American Summer and for the popular Cops spoof Reno 911!