The Life of Larry andLarry & Steve are two animatedshort films created bySeth MacFarlane in the mid-1990s that eventually led to the development of the animated sitcomFamily Guy. He originally createdThe Life of Larry as a thesis film in 1995 while attending theRhode Island School of Design.[1][2] His professor at RISD submitted MacFarlane's cartoon toHanna-Barbera, where he was hired a year later.[3]
Later that year, MacFarlane created a retool ofThe Life of Larry calledLarry & Steve that features the main character of his first film, the dim-witted, middle-aged Larry, and an intellectual dog named Steve. MacFarlane was also hired as a writer forDisney'sJungle Cubs. The short was broadcast as one ofCartoon Network'sWorld Premiere Toons in 1997. Executives atFox saw bothLarry shorts and contracted MacFarlane to create a series based on the characters, to be calledFamily Guy.[4]
Peter Griffin, one of the main characters inFamily Guy, is largely based on Larry,[4] while Steve is the main inspiration behind the Griffin family dog,Brian.[5] Fox proposed MacFarlane complete a 15-minute short, giving him a budget of $50,000.[6] MacFarlane stated that the pilot forFamily Guy took half a year to create and produce.[3]
Recalling the experience in an interview withThe 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] The network executives were impressed with the pilot and ordered thirteen episodes, seven of which aired during thefirst season ofFamily Guy. MacFarlane was offered a $2-million-per-season contract.[9]
| The Life of Larry | |
|---|---|
 Title card forThe Life of Larry. | |
| Directed by | Seth MacFarlane |
| Written by | Seth MacFarlane |
| Produced by | Seth MacFarlane Davis Doi(supervising) |
| Starring | Seth MacFarlane Chang S. Han |
| Edited by | Seth MacFarlane |
| Music by | Seth MacFarlane |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Rhode Island School of Design |
Release date |
|
Running time | 11 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
The Life of Larry is a 1995 animated film directed by Seth MacFarlane, who also stars as the majority of the characters. It also features a brief appearance from American politicianNewt Gingrich in a cutaway gag that employs audio of one of Gingrich's speeches. The short features a middle-agedeveryman named Larry Cummings, hiscynical talking dog, Steve, patient wife Lois, andoverweight teenage son Milt.
The film also features live-action segments shot at MacFarlane's home inKent, Connecticut, where he describes the film and its characters in the form of a pitch to a television network. During the live action segments, MacFarlane is being served cheesecake by his Asian servant, Wang, played by fellow student Chang S. Han.
The Life of Larry was created as MacFarlane's thesis film during 1994–1995, while he was studying at the Rhode Island School of Design.[1][2] The animated film was created almost entirely by MacFarlane alone, with the exception being the live action sequence, which was filmed by classmates Sean Leahy and Greg Scalzo.
Many jokes and cutaway gags used inThe Life of Larry were later used in the first season ofFamily Guy.
| The Life of Larry and Larry & Steve | |
|---|---|
 Title card | |
| Written by | Seth MacFarlane |
| Directed by | Seth MacFarlane |
| Starring | Seth MacFarlane Lori Alan |
| Music by | Ron Jones Gary Lionelli(Theme) Bodie Chandler(director) |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Larry Huber Sherry Gunther |
| Running time | 7 minutes |
| Production company | Cartoon Network Studios |
| Original release | |
| Network | Cartoon Network |
| Release | February 5, 1997 (1997-02-05) |
Hanna-Barbera's head of development, Ellen Cockrill, sawThe Life of Larry and met MacFarlane during a senior screening at RISD. Cockrill offered him a development position atWhat a Cartoon! to create a sequel of sorts toThe Life of Larry, which Cartoon Network broadcast in 1997. He went on staff at the studio afterwards, developing a still-born revival ofThe Jetsons and becoming a staff writer on theJohnny Bravo series, partnered with writer/directorButch Hartman, under story editorSteve Marmel.
The plot ofLarry & Steve is that Larry adopts Steve from the dog pound, after noticing that he was the only talking dog (although to everybody else throughout the cartoon, Steve is just barking, similar to Stewie inFamily Guy), and the two have a drawn out,slapstick-filled misadventure trying to buy furniture and appliances for Larry's apartment.
There is also an airline pilot in this cartoon, whose voice and appearance is very similar to theFamily Guy characterGlenn Quagmire who is also a commercial airline pilot inFamily Guy. Larry mentions a furniture store called "Stewie's", a name that will later be used for the character ofPeter Griffin's infant son.
A man who resembles Peter's father (in reality his stepfather) Francis also appears in the short.
In basic form,The Life of Larry is very similar in format toFamily Guy. Steve would be the main inspiration behind Brian.[5] MacFarlane based Peter's voice, which was similar to Larry's,[5] on the voice of a security guard he once overheard talking while he was attending the RISD.[10] While Larry and Peter's wives share the same name, they do not resemble one another.
Larry's son Milt, by contrast, harbors a basic design similarity to Peter's sonChris. The pilot of the plane that crashes in the store inLarry & Steve has a chin and voice that are both similar to Quagmire's, who is also a pilot. Two characters from both films, Shelley Boothbishop and Larry, made their way into theFamily Guy episodes, with Shelley appearing in "There's Something About Paulie", "North by North Quahog" and "Long John Peter". Larry also appeared in the episode "Happy Holo-ween" as one of the forms a malfunctioning Holo-Peter takes on upon his demise. Larry was also the name of one of Peter's sperm donors in the episode "A House Full of Peters".
... his company, Fuzzy Door Productions ...
| Television series |
| ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Characters |
| ||||
| Production | |||||
| Media releases |
| ||||
| Episodes |
| ||||
| Hallmarks |
| ||||
| Video games |
| ||||
| Related articles | |||||
