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: Best known for her roles as the outrageous Mrs. Swan on MADtv and devoted wife Lois on the hit Fox series Family Guy, comedic female talent Alex Borstein has been keeping busy on screens both large and small ever since appearing in a handful of Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers in the mid-'90s. Born in Highland Park, Chicago, and raised in the nearby suburb of Deerfield, Borstein moved to Los Angeles with her family in 1980 and eventually enrolled in San Francisco State University. It was there that the aspiring comic began trying her talent at improvisational theater, and shortly after graduation she would begin performing at the ACME Comedy Theatre. Small roles in The Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers and a short-lived spin-off were quick to follow, with her stint on MADtv beginning in 1997. While many fans cited her as a highlight of MADtv thanks to her outlandish characters and quick wit, Borstein was also eager to launch a film career and could frequently be seen in features such as Showtime, Bad Santa, and Catwoman. With a distinctive voice that seemed to lend itself well to animated performances, Borstein was cast as levelheaded housewife Lois on Family Guy in 1999. It was around this time that she also continued her small-screen trajectory with a handful appearances on the wildly popular family drama Gilmore Girls.In 2005, Borstein took a turn for the dramatic in the monochromatic period drama Good Night, and Good Luck, with subsequent television roles on Drawn Together and Robot Chicken serving well to balance out the seriousness of the critically acclaimed Edward R. Murrow drama. The following year, Borstein brought her popular stage show to viewers across the nation with the release of Drop Dead Gorgeous (In a Down to Earth Bombshell Sort of Way) on home video. In 2007, Borstein was paired with Good Night, and Good Luck star Jeff Daniels once again in the tense crime thriller The Lookout. As the years rolled on, Borstein would continue to remain a force on screen, appearing in movies like Killers, Dinner for Schmucks, and Ted.

Trivia: A petite actress with olive skin and pixie features, Ukrainian-born Mila Kunis became a breakout teen star on the FOX sitcom That '70s Show, playing spoiled daddy's girl Jackie Burkhardt. The rare 15-year-old actress to be cast as a 15-year-old character, Kunis also demonstrated her maturity by mastering accent-free English only a few years after immigrating. Her command of slang and teen vocal mannerisms won her work even when her appearance was not being utilized, as she voiced another all-American teen on FOX's animated envelope-pusher, Family Guy.Milena Markovna Kunis was born on August 14, 1983 in Kiev, Ukraine, then moved with her parents to Los Angeles when she was seven years old. Kunis credits listening to the simple vocabulary of Bob Barker on The Price Is Right with helping her develop a speedy fluency in English. She enrolled in acting classes at the Beverly Hills Studio, where she was discovered performing in a showcase. She quickly began appearing in commercials. Kunis filled out her early resumé with such pit stops as Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves (1997), Krippendorf's Tribe (1998), and the infamous WB ratings cellar-dweller Nick Freno: Licensed Teacher (1996). She also played a younger version of Angelina Jolie in the HBO movie Gia (1998). But it was her casting in Mark Brazill's That '70s Show that earned Kunis notice, as her petulant teen queen soon became a standout, able to range from endearing to grating. Her aggravated whining rung true enough to earn her a voice-over role on Family Guy, taking over for Lacey Chabert as Megan Griffin during the 2000 season. As the 2000's roled along, however, Kunis would seem to graduate to the ranks of adult actresses, rather than teen starlets, in seemingly the blink of an eye. Her comic turn in 2008's massively successful comedy Forgetting Sarah Marshall kicked off Kunis' new style, followed quickly by roles as a femme fatale in 2008's Max Payne, a seductive grifter in 2009's Extract, and a post apocalyptic heroine in 2010's Book of Eli. 2010 would also find her playing opposite Natalie Portman's Oscar winning performance in Darren Aronofsky's psychological thriller The Black Swan. Though her supporting role offered less opportunity to showcase her talents than her costar's did, Kunis was roundly praised for the skill and presence she brought to the production -- not to mention her commitment to transforming her body for her character, training for months in ballet -- all further cementing her reputation as a serious actress. Kunis would spend the next several years appearing in numerous projects, like Friends with Benefits, The Muppets, Ted, Oz the Great and Powerful and Jupiter Ascending, an epic space drama directed by the Wachowskis.

Trivia: Early acting appearances included guest spots on Dawson's Creek, Freaks and Geeks and Undeclared. Supplied voice work for Fox's animated comedy Family Guy, doing impressions of celebrities such as Cybill Shepherd, Sarah Jessica Parker and Christina Aguilera. Played Willa McPherson, Lucy's protégé-in-training, for two seasons on FX's Dirt.

Trivia: Even those who don't know Kevin Michael Richardson's face will frequently remember his voice. The actor's unique baritone has made him a memorable presence in many projects, including several voices on the animated series Family Guy. A classically trained performer, Richardson was one of eight students selected for the 1982 National Foundation for the Arts program, leading to a full scholarship for Syracuse University. He would go on to become a successful actor and voice actor, wracking up a long list of roles on everything from Pokemon to The New Batman Adventures. Othyer shows featuring Richardson's distinctive voice include Transformers Prime, Ultimate Spider-Man, and Green Lantern: The Animated Series. Real-life voices Richardson has portrayed include Bob Hope (in a 2006 Malcolm in the Middle episode), Bill Cosby (a number of Family Guy episodes) and Plato (PBS's Adventures From the Book of Virtues, 1996-98).

Trivia: Squared-jawed beefcake Patrick Warburton leapt into pop culture consciousness as David Puddy, Elaine's on-again, off-again boyfriend on the hit sitcom Seinfeld in 1995, and has since then steadily found his deadpan talents in ever-greater demand. With his squinty eyes and hard-boiled detective's voice, Warburton has become a humorous personality who can generate giggles with almost no effort, whether onscreen or in voice-overs.Warburton was born on November 14, 1964, in Paterson, NJ, and raised in Southern California, a son of little-known television actress Barbara Lord. The future Bugle Boy model studied marine biology at Orange Coast College, where he met his wife, Cathi, before dropping out to pursue modeling and acting at age 19. In his first screen appearance, the 17th century slave film Dragonard (1987), Warburton was subject to what is thought to be the longest onscreen flogging on film, a 100-lash scene that consumes nearly four minutes of screen time. He also appeared in the sequel, Master of Dragonard Hill (1989), before turning his attention to television.Warburton had guest spots on such shows as Murphy Brown, Designing Women, and Quantum Leap before scoring a recurring role on the short-lived Dave Barry sitcom Dave's World in 1993. But it was not until he appeared in the 1995 episode of Seinfeld entitled "The Fusilli Jerry" that Warburton really started to attract attention. As Puddy, Jerry's lunkhead mechanic who spits out dialogue in macho spurts, notably the catchphrase affirmation "Yeah that's right," Warburton quickly became a popular semi-regular, involved in a running joke about his frequent breakups and reconciliations with Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus). He stayed with the show until it finished in 1998, and provided the voice for Superman in a series of commercials starring Seinfeld.Warburton had another recurring role as unscrupulous businessman Johnny Johnson on News Radio in 1999, then contributed his memorable voice to characters on the animated shows Family Guy, Hercules, and Buzz Lightyear of Star Command. By this time the big screen was really beckoning, as Warburton flexed his comic talents as a bodyguard in Scream 3 (2000), then toned them down as an American astronomer in Australia in The Dish (2000). His voice was again called upon, this time by Disney, for the role of a sorceress' thug assistant in The Emperor's New Groove (2000). Going zanier than on Seinfeld, Warburton signed on as the star of the Fox sitcom The Tick, about a muscle-bound but dimwitted superhero in a blue costume, which premiered in the fall of 2001. High-profile projects in 2002 would include a role in the delayed ensemble farce Big Trouble and as Agent T alongside Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith in Men in Black 2.Warburton became an in demand voice actor working on a variety of projects including TV series like The Venture Brothers and Family Guy, as well as movies such as Home on the Range, Chicken Little, The Wild, and Bee Movie. In 2007 he started on a successful run with the sitcom Rules of Engagement, and in 2012 he appeared in Seth McFarland's directorial debut, Ted.

Trivia: Mae Whitman began acting at the ripe old age of six with a role in the 1994 alcoholism drama When a Man Loves a Woman. Appearances in Bye Bye, Love and Independence Day followed before multiple-episode stints on the CBS dramas Chicago Hope and JAG. In 2001, Whitman was cast in the title role of the Fox Family Channel period sitcom State of Grace, about a pair of adolescent girls overcoming cultural differences against the backdrop of 1960s America. After that show's two-season run, she could next be seen as George Michael's milquetoast girlfriend Ann on the critically acclaimed Fox sitcom Arrested Development. A starring role opposite Andre Braugher on the short-lived FX series Thief came in 2006. And in 2007, Whitman was cast in a supporting role on NBC's reimagined The Bionic Woman. In the years to come, Whitman would remain active on screen, starring on the series Parenthood, and in movies like The Perks of Being a Wallflower.