Claim: Seth MacFarlane won a competition.

Seth Woodbury MacFarlane -LRB- -LSB- ˈsɛθ_ˈwʊdbɛri_məkˈfɑrlɪn -RSB- born October 26 , 1973 -RRB- is an American actor , filmmaker , and singer , working primarily in animation and comedy , as well as live-action and other genres . MacFarlane is the creator of the TV series Family Guy -LRB- 1999 -- 2003 , 2005 -- present -RRB- , co-creator of the TV series American Dad ! -LRB- 2005 -- present -RRB- and The Cleveland Show -LRB- 2009 -- 13 -RRB- . He also wrote , directed , and starred in the films Ted -LRB- 2012 -RRB- , its sequel Ted 2 -LRB- 2015 -RRB- , and A Million Ways to Die in the West -LRB- 2014 -RRB- .   MacFarlane is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design , where he studied animation . Recruited to Hollywood , he was an animator and writer for Hanna-Barbera for several television series , including Johnny Bravo , Cow and Chicken , Dexter 's Laboratory , I Am Weasel , and Larry & Steve . As an actor , he has made guest appearances on series , such as Gilmore Girls , The War at Home and FlashForward . In 2008 , he created his own YouTube series titled Seth MacFarlane 's Cavalcade of Cartoon Comedy . He won several awards for his work on Family Guy , including two Primetime Emmy Awards and an Annie Award . In 2009 , he won the Webby Award for Film & Video Person of the Year . He occasionally speaks at universities and colleges throughout the United States , and he is a supporter of gay rights .   MacFarlane 's first feature-length comedy film , Ted , features his voice acting and performance-capture as the titular anthropomorphic teddy bear and became the highest-grossing original R-rated comedy . As a singer MacFarlane has performed at several venues , including Carnegie Hall and the Royal Albert Hall . MacFarlane has released three studio albums , in the same vein of his musical idol Frank Sinatra , beginning with Music Is Better Than Words in 2011 . He wrote the lyrics for the Academy Award-nominated song `` Everybody Needs a Best Friend '' for Ted .   MacFarlane served as executive producer of Cosmos : A Spacetime Odyssey , an update of the 1980s Carl Sagan -- hosted Cosmos series , hosted by Neil deGrasse Tyson . MacFarlane was instrumental in providing funding for the series , as well as securing studio support for it from other entertainment executives .