• Student film by Seth MacFarlane Larry’s life served as a pilot for his later show Family manwhich features similar fast-paced comedies and iconic characters.
  • Characters in Larry’s life have a different design and voice compared to their final versions in Family manbut humor and vocal archetypes are present.
  • Sequel to Macfarlane’s book Larry’s lifeentitled Larry and Stevehad a more child-friendly atmosphere and was developed for a Cartoon Network show, showing MacFarlane’s evolution as an artist.

Seth Macfarlane’s row, Family manis one of the longest running animated programs in television history, but were it not for his two Larry shorts, we would never have a Griffin family at all! Now what Larry shorts, you ask? In short, these shorts are essentially just prototypes.family man - a sort of confirmation of the concept of his future series. But they did not start with this, from the first Larry In short, this is MacFarlane’s academic work with love. Watching these shorts is like looking into an alternate reality… it’s weird. At the same time, if Family man it’s your jam, then you’ll find a lot of fun in these two obscure cartoons and you can thank them for eventually introducing us to the gang in Quahog!

If you grew up in the 2000s, then you know the name Seth MacFarlane like the back of your hand. His show is like Family man, american dadAnd cleveland Showas well as his Ted movies have made him an omnipresent force in our lives for some time now. His characters like Peter Bryan and, most importantly, Stewie Griffin (all voiced by MacFarlane) are just a few of his longtime creations. His particular style of comedy is now deeply rooted across generations, going beyond early viewers staying up late to watch an episode on Fox or Adult Swim, whether they were allowed to or not. These shows were fast-paced, with jokes per mile per minute, and were rougher than other adult animation programs such as The Simpsons And king of the hillbut that was also part of the fun for them.

Animated short film that led to the creation of Family Guy

Image via Cartoon Network

Before McFarlane became the industry-dominant titan he is today, or even was in the early 2000s, he was just a college student at the Rhode Island School of Design, where he studied film, video, and most importantly, animation. It was there that MacFarlane came up with the idea for a student film. Larry’s life, an animated short film that was supposed to be a pilot for a future show and a ticket to Hollywood. Little did McFarlane know that his little college assignment in 1995 would take him much further than just Hollywood.

If you are a fan Family man or any other work by Macfarlane, and then see Larry’s life will be a very familiar and amusing exercise for you. This animated short follows a dim-witted middle-aged man named Larry, his monotonous dog Steve, his loving wife Lois, and their teenage son Milt. They are all voiced by MacFarlane, with the exception of Milt, who is silent. MacFarlane even used Peter’s voice for Larry and Brian’s voice for Steve - seriously, this is where the alternate timeline feel really kicks in. However, their designs of all characters are different from future characters. Larry is apparently a few years older than Peter Griffin, has a leaner build, and only has a bit of gray hair left around his bald head. Steve is a brown dog, in contrast to Brian’s white coat. Lois will retain her name in the final series, but looks more voluminous than her character’s final design. On the other hand, Larry’s son Milt would look like Chris if he were a linebacker. Seriously, he’s a mountain.

Larry’s life bears an uncanny resemblance to MacFarlane’s other works, not only in its characters. It’s fast-paced (though not as intense as his show later on), filled with cutaway jokes, contains a lot of the same vocal archetypes that would be used in future shows, and even spiced up with a bit of jazz. here and there. There are even two jokes that will eventually be added to some early versions. Family man episodes (one of which is related to Tom Hanks movie Philadelphiaand another in which two Britons “insult passing cars”). There is no special plot, they seem to just sit in their apartment and discuss a new topic every minute, but given the guy who created Larry, it tracks. It’s rough around the edges, but overall works great and feels right at home with everything else its creator has gone on to do. Simply put, this is Macfarlane 101.

Differences between “The Life of Larry” and “Family Guy”

Griffin family together

However, there are a few interesting differences here and there, aside from the obvious alternate character designs. First, Seth MacFarlane himself presents the short live, dressed to the nines, in a beautiful suit, enjoying a cigar and a book, and sitting by a roaring fire. In fact, he pops in several times throughout the series, giving us little details of Larry’s life, all with a touch of suave elitist demeanor. His servant Van is surrounded by a strangely awkward joke (Chang S. Khan), who drops in from time to time to try and take care of MacFarlane, but ends up only annoying him. It’s a weird and problematic touch that didn’t even make it into his subsequent proto-short film.

Larry’s life It was such a powerful animated short that visitors to Hanna-Barbera saw it. There MacFarlane worked on shows such as Johnny Bravo, Dexter’s Laboratoryand even incredibly underrated cow and chicken! Most importantly, he developed a sequel Larry’s life entitled Larry and Steve for the Hanna-Barbera anthology program What a cartoon! Larry and Steve definitely Larry’s life close by, but it feels like a ridiculous amount of cartoony network isms have been thrown into it. It’s very, very child friendly. To be honest, this is the version Larry designed for a Cartoon Network show, built after MacFarlane’s indie days and before he became an animation giant, so his distinct voice doesn’t necessarily sound unfiltered.

The plot of the short is simple. Larry adopts Steve from an animal shelter and the two of them drive around the city looking for things to put in their apartment. Neither Lois nor Milt appear, there are no live performances or animated cutouts, and apart from Larry and Steve themselves, the animation style and character designs are more like standard Hanna-Barbera. However, Larry sounds like Peter, Steve sounds like Brian, and both characters act like their future counterparts, just less adult-oriented jokes. Hey, don’t forget the airline pilot who talks exactly like Quagmire and the name of the store called Stewie’s! Little seeds were planted with Larry and Stevewhich makes it an interesting watch, but nowhere near as fun as its predecessors.

While at Hanna-Barbera, McFarlane began developing Family man even further and eventually the series found its place on the Fox channel. One presentation, a $40,000 budget, and a six-month deadline from the studio is all he needs to launch his groundbreaking show, and the rest is history. 24 years after the premiere, it’s easy to imagine Family man as the start of MacFarlane’s long and successful career, but let’s not lose sight of the artist’s humble beginnings. Larry’s life And Larry and Steve are not just fun animated shorts, they are the perfect representation of an artist who pursues his dreams, is true to his vision and hit the jackpot. Thanks for getting us where we are today, Larry and Steve!