History Trivia / AmericanDad

** After reruns of Family Guy left TBS, American Dad! reruns no longer reruns the show on a regular basis, usually only airing it on early weekend mornings or in late night slots.

* SameVoiceTheirEntireLife: Whenever there's a flashback to Stan's childhood, the character is still voiced by Seth MacFarlane, albeit in a falsetto voice.

** George Washington Carver didn't actually invent peanut butter, though the real origins of the food aren't nearly as interesting as the conspiracy Steve unearthed.

* InspirationForTheWork: Creator/SethMacFarlane came up with the series when he and fellow ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' writer Mike Barker were frustrated following the results of the 2004 election and, rather than complain on end, vented their feelings into something funny. Ironically, the show actually moved away from political humor as time went on.

!!ImageSource for:
* [[ActionDad/WesternAnimation Action Dad.Western Animation]]
* AnAlienNamedBob
* [[CouchGag/WesternAnimation Couch Gag.Western Animation]]
* CreepyGymCoach ("The Wrestler")
* CripplingTheCompetition ("Next of Pin")
* DeepImmersionGaming ("Dungeons and Wagons")
* EmergingFromTheShadows ("Dungeons and Wagons")
* JockDadNerdSon ("Every Which Way But Lose")
* KidsPlayMatchBreaker ("Opedial Panties")
* MoveAlongNothingToSeeHere
* NoBisexuals ("It's Good to Be the Queen")
* PopularIsEvil ("It's Good to Be the Queen")
* SelfPlagiarism (middle column)
* {{Telethon}} ("Phantom of the Telethon")
* SharedUniverse (''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' and ''WesternAnimation/TheClevelandShow'' crossover)

!!QuoteSource for:
* AesopAmnesia
* AmusingAlien
* AndThatLittleGirlWasMe
* TheAntiChrist
* BaitAndSwitch
* TheBear
* CampyCombat
* CantTieHisTie
* DinnerAndABreakup
* DiscontinuityNod
* FingerTenting
* NobodysThatDumb
* NotQuiteDead
* PrimalScene
* QueerAsTropes
* ShamuFu
* StringTheory

!!VideoSource for:
* AccidentalDanceCraze
* AndThatLittleGirlWasMe
* BlandNameProduct
* DanceOff
* DelayedReaction
* ExplainExplainOhCrap
* FlushTheEvidence
* IJustShotMarvinInTheFace
* InnerThoughtsOutsiderPuzzlement
* NobodysThatDumb (two examples)
* OhNoNotAgain
* OscarBait
* RoaringRampageOfRevenge
* SideEffectsInclude
* SpoofAesop
* SuicideAsComedy
* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome
* TakeOurWordForIt
* UnexpectedVirgin

* ImageSource: This show provides the page image for:
** [[ActionDad/WesternAnimation Action Dad.Western Animation]]
** [[CouchGag/WesternAnimation Couch Gag.Western Animation]]
** CreepyGymCoach ("The Wrestler")
** CripplingTheCompetition ("Next of Pin")
** DeepImmersionGaming ("Dungeons and Wagons")
** EmergingFromTheShadows ("Dungeons and Wagons")
** JockDadNerdSon ("Every Which Way But Lose")
** NoBisexuals ("It's Good to Be the Queen")
** SelfPlagiarism (middle column)
** {{Telethon}} ("Phantom of the Telethon")
** SharedUniverse (''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' and ''WesternAnimation/TheClevelandShow'' crossover)

* QuoteSource:
** AesopAmnesia
** AmusingAlien
** AndThatLittleGirlWasMe
** TheAntiChrist
** BaitAndSwitch
** TheBear
** CampyCombat
** CantTieHisTie
** DinnerAndABreakup
** DiscontinuityNod
** FingerTenting
** NobodysThatDumb
** NotQuiteDead
** PrimalScene
** QueerAsTropes
** ShamuFu
** StringTheory

* VideoSource
** AccidentalDanceCraze
** AndThatLittleGirlWasMe
** BlandNameProduct
** DanceOff
** DelayedReaction
** ExplainExplainOhCrap
** FlushTheEvidence
** IJustShotMarvinInTheFace
** InnerThoughtsOutsiderPuzzlement
** NobodysThatDumb (two examples)
** OhNoNotAgain
** OscarBait
** RoaringRampageOfRevenge
** SideEffectsInclude
** SpoofAesop
** SuicideAsComedy
** SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome
** TakeOurWordForIt
** UnexpectedVirgin

* WhatCouldHaveBeen:
** Originally, Creator/LauraPrepon (Donna from ''Series/That70sShow'') was supposed to voice Hayley Smith, but was replaced by Creator/SethMacFarlane's sister, Rachael. Had Prepon stayed, the show would have gotten a lot more unfavorable comparisons to ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' as the latter show also has someone from ''That '70s Show'' as a cast member (Creator/MilaKunis replaced an uncredited Creator/LaceyChabert on ''Family Guy'' and played Jackie on ''That '70s Show'').
** According to the commentaries, the original plan for Roger would've been that season 1 would've had him be stuck in the house all the time, but get fed up with it in season 2 and try the disguises. They would've worked until season 3, where Roger gets revealed in public and it becomes a giant media scandal. But by season 4, everyone would've gotten used to aliens and stopped caring, making Roger try to become the hot new story with schemes.
** Klaus was originally supposed to be a Frenchman, but Creator/DeeBradleyBaker didn't know French well, so they retooled the character to make him German, since Baker can do a German accent and spent enough time in Germany to know some words.
** Creator/JohnDiMaggio, Creator/RobPaulsen and Creator/BillyWest were considered to voice Klaus.
** Steve also had a different design (read: he was really skinny and awkward-looking), and was going to be voiced by ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' writer Ricky Blitt. This design can be seen on an early trailer for the show on the ''Family Guy: Freakin' Sweet Collection'' DVD and the unaired test pilot that was leaked online.
** Season 1:
*** The Golden Turd storyline was originally to be ongoing within the first season instead of being spread out over multiple seasons (and often years). The second installment was originally to happen in "Stannie Get Your Gun" and made it as far as being fully animated before being cut for time (but can still be seen however in the deleted scenes of the Volume 2 DVD set), while the third installment would've happened in "Rough Trade". The actual second installment in the following season's "Failure is Not a Factory-Installed Option" essentially combines both of the stories of the original planned installments into one.
** Season 2:
*** The idea of Toshi marrying Svetlana at the end of "Of Ice and Men" was initially to be followed up on in a later episode as a subplot with Steve, Snot, and Barry giving him a bachelor party.
*** Creator/JaneFonda, Creator/DonaldSutherland, and Creator/MartinScorsese were all offered the opportunity to voice themselves in "The Best Christmas Story Never Told" but all three declined.
*** A rejected idea for "A.T. The Abusive Terrestrial" was for Roger to go back to the family he was with prior to the Smiths, who would've been played by Henry Thomas and Creator/DrewBarrymore (Elliott and Gertie respectively from ''Film/ETTheExtraTerrestrial'').
*** The original draft for "Four Little Words"[[note]]the episode where Stan tries to cover up Bullock accidentally killing his date so he doesn't have to hear Francine lecture him with "I told you so"[[/note]] involved several CIA agents being mysteriously killed and Stan believing that Bullock is the one behind it.
*** The season finale "Joint Custody" (the episode where Stan and Roger try to bust Jeff on growing and selling marijuana in Florida) was originally conceived as a way of continuing the Golden Turd storyline with the death of Mrs. Marylin Thacker from the previous installment either in a condo pool in Boca Raton by an alligator or being killed by a liquor store delivery man to steal the turd to give to a Cuban crime boss to save his sister. The idea was ultimately cut for time and it would be another eight years before another installment was featured in the Season 10 episode "Blagnarst: A Love Story" (which focused on Marylin's district attorney son finding the Golden Turd and calling an oil company magnate for financial support on his campaign to become Senator).
** Season 3:
*** Several endings were proposed for "Dope & Faith" due to [[TroubledProduction the crew having a hard time coming up with one]]. One such ending would've had Stan meeting Brett's brother at his funeral and befriending him when Stan learns that Brett's brother does believe in God.
*** Michelle (the Ghost of Christmas Past) from Season 2's "The Best Christmas Story Never Told" was to return for "The Most Adequate Christmas Ever". Her role in the episode was ultimately given to a new character with the same name due to negotiation issues with Creator/LisaKudrow (the voice of the original Michelle).
** Season 4:
*** A subplot was originally conceived for "Escape from Pearl Bailey" where Francine buys Roger his very own star. It was completely removed when the writers ended up making the main plot the only story of the episode. The rejected storyline was used in a later episode when Hayley buys a star that turns out to be Roger's home planet.
*** One of the families that Roger would have been adopted into on the episode "Family Affair" was The Griffins from ''Family Guy''.
*** Creator/SethRogen was originally set to play Etan Cohen in "Bar Mitzvah Hustle". However, he was considered too mature-sounding, so he was ultimately replaced by Creator/SethGreen.
*** The first choice for the role of the Delorean door salesman in "Delorean Story-an" was Creator/ChristopherLloyd. However, he declined, resulting in Joe Flaherty[[note]]one of the original cast members from ''SCTV''[[/note]] getting the part.
** The initial idea for what would be done with Hayley after she and Jeff conned Stan out of his $50,000 in "100 A.D." is that we would briefly check in on how they were spending the money in the episodes until her return in "There Will Be Bad Blood". Ultimately, this was scrapped to have them spending it all over the course of a single episode in "Son of Stan" in order to get away from Roger.
** The Season 7 episode, "Hot Water":
*** The "Chuck Berry me over Germany" line from "Hot Tub of Love" had several different variations including "Throat Choke me over Germany". Additionally, the song was originally to be sung by Seth [=MacFarlane=] instead of [=CeeLo=] Green.
*** The episode was originally conceived as the series finale, simply because they had no idea if the show had been renewed or not and figured "What better way to end the show than by killing the main character?". Ultimately, the show was renewed and this episode was written off as being non-canon.

* CharacterSpecificPages:
** [[Characters/AmericanDadStanSmith Stan Smith]]
** [[Characters/AmericanDadRogerSmith Roger Smith]][[note]]Includes his personas[[/note]]

** [[Characters/AmericanDadRogerSmith Roger Smith]][[note]]Includes his alternate personas[[/note]]

** Creator/{{Fox}} initially treated this show very well early in it's run, as they frequently promoted the show alongside sister-series ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' and ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'', to the point that they screwed over ''WesternAnimation/KingOfTheHill'' just to promote this show. [[ScrewedByTheNetwork Fox later did the opposite halfway through its run on the network...]]

* RealLifeRelative: Hayley is voiced by Seth [=MacFarlane's=] sister Rachel.

** "Hurricane!" was originally supposed to air on May 1st, 2011. However, it along with the other two episodes in the "Night of the Hurricane!" event were pulled in light of the 2011 super outbreak of tornadoes that occurred in the southern US between April 25th and the 28th. The episode (along with the other two episodes in the "Night of the Hurricane!" event from ''The Cleveland Show'' and ''Family Guy'') ultimately premiered five months and a day later on October 2nd.

** The final two episodes of Season 15, "Downtown" and "Cheek to Cheek: A Stripper's Story", were originally scheduled for September 2nd and 9th, 2019 respectively. However, those episodes were moved to season 16 (though on Wiki/{{Wikipedia}}, they're listed as the last two episodes of season 15, not season 16 episodes).
** "Roger Needs Dick" was supposed to air on June 1, 2020, but was replaced with "One Fish, Two Fish"[[note]]no actual reason is given, but, considering that the episode was scheduled to air around the time of the George Floyd riots and there was a plot point where Roger tries to shoot Dick, it can be assumed that TBS was wary about airing that kind of violence so soon[[/note]]. However, "Roger Needs Dick" was released on [=OnDemand=] on June 2nd, and ended up airing two months later on August 3rd.

** Originally, Creator/LauraPrepon (Donna from ''Series/That70sShow'') was supposed to voice Hayley Smith, but was replaced by Creator/SethMacFarlane's sister, Rachel. Had Prepon stayed, the show would have gotten a lot more unfavorable comparisons to ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' as the latter show also has someone from ''That '70s Show'' as a cast member (Creator/MilaKunis replaced an uncredited Creator/LaceyChabert on ''Family Guy'' and played Jackie on ''That '70s Show'').

** In 2020, Adult Swim pulled "Threat Levels" from their rerun rotation, whose beginning is about Stan accidentally bringing home a deadly virus causing the CIA to put the entire family on quarantine (then letting them go when it's discovered the virus wasn't deadly), in the wake of the ongoing [[UsefulNotes/CoronavirusDisease2019Pandemic COVID-19 pandemic]]. However, the episode is still shown on TBS and available on DVD, [=OnDemand=] (on TBS), and streaming services. By the end of the year, "Threat Levels" returned to the Adult Swim rerun rotation (even though the pandemic is still going on, with a third wave happening in the United States as of late 2020).

* AccidentallyCorrectWriting: George Washington Carver didn't actually invent peanut butter, though the real origins of the food aren't nearly as interesting as the conspiracy Steve unearthed.

* UnintentionalPeriodPiece: Episodes from the first two seasons before the show shifted from politics to outlandish plots are very clearly a product of both the mid-to-late 2000s and the Bush administration, with the constant bashing on Bush, his administration's policies and events that occurred during the time like the War on Terror. Beside that, the earlier episodes also had contemporary references like jokes about the NBC sitcom ''Series/{{Scrubs}}'' not being funny (as seen on "Helping Handis") and references to Kobe Bryant's rape trial that he was later acquitted for due to a lack of good evidence.

** Creator/BillyWest initially auditioned for Klaus.

* SameContentDifferentRating: The first two episodes of the series, "Pilot", and "Threat Levels", were rated TV-PG when they first premiered. "Threat Levels" has since been re-rated TV-14, while "Pilot" is still TV-PG, but with more sub-labels.[[note]]"Pilot" went from being TV-PG for suggestive dialogue (D) to TV-PG for suggestive dialogue, offensive language, and violence (DLV)[[/note]]

** "Shipley’s Believe It or Not"[[note]]named after the writer for this episode, Michael Shipley[[/note]] became "Dope & Faith". Press releases have also given the title as "Hogwarts".

** "Twindecent Proposal"[[note]]the episode where Steve and Roger go to Hollywood to revive their child acting career while the rest of the family shop at Spencer's Gifts[[/note]]became "Twininagans"

** Creator/{{TBS}} frequently promotes the new episodes of the show once it moved to the network, constently renews the series for additional seasons, and reruns are as common as when it aired on sister-network Creator/AdultSwim. It's justified, given that it's the network's most watched original series.

* DistancedFromCurrentEvents: In 2020, Adult Swim pulled "Threat Levels" from their rerun rotation, whose beginning is about Stan accidentally bringing home a deadly virus causing the CIA to put the entire family on quarantine (then letting them go when it's discovered the virus wasn't deadly), in the wake of the ongoing [[UsefulNotes/CoronavirusDisease2019Pandemic COVID-19 pandemic]]. However, the episode is still shown on TBS and available on DVD, [=OnDemand=] (on TBS), and streaming services. By the end of the year, "Threat Levels" returned to the Adult Swim rerun rotation (even though the pandemic is still going on, with a third wave happening in the United States as of late 2020).

** FlushTheEvidence

** Adult Swim rarely, if ever, reruns "Hurricane!" (the third part of the Seth [=MacFarlane=] animated trio crossover where the Brown-Tubbses from ''The Cleveland Show'', the Griffins from ''Family Guy'', and the Smiths from this show all try to weather a hurricane) during the active months of the Atlantic hurricane season, as the episode takes place inside of the storm.

** NobodysThatDumb

** RealityEnsues