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    Jack Smith 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1256317.jpg
Voiced by: Daran Norris

Stan’s father who abandoned him as a child, a jewel thief and con-man.


  • The Atoner: After all the terrible things he's done to his family, along with trapping Minstrel Krampus, which allowed Santa to make children more spoiled and bratty over the years, he becomes the next Krampus and can go around the world teaching naughty children how to behave, and make the world a better place. However, he seems to have quit doing this due to stress and now works as a bus driver in Baltimore.
  • Broken Pedestal: The only thing that ever stopped Stan from realizing that his dad was a terrible person was the lie that Jack was actually a secret agent. When it turns out that Jack was actually a notorious jewel thief, it all comes crashing down.
  • Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: Has played this trope several times due to his appearances being very infrequent and often times years apart:
    • After his debut in "Con Heir" from Season 1, outside of flashbacks his next appearance wouldn't be for a little more than three years when he returned in "Jack's Back" from Season 4.
    • After "Jack's Back", it'd be another three and a half years before he reappeared in "Blood Crieth Unto Heaven" from Season 8. He would then appear in the following season's Christmas special "Minstrel Krampus" which was originally intended to air before "Blood Crieth Unto Heaven".
    • After becoming Krampus in "Minstrel Krampus", he disappeared from the show for the longest time before reappearing in Season 13's "Ninety West, North Zero" yet another three years after his last appearance.
    • In the most recent season he appears a lot more, but mostly minor appearances. He’s also human again with no explanationnote .
  • Daddy Didn't Show: Mostly because he's been in jail.
  • Disappeared Dad: To Stan. He left his family and spent 20-40 years in prison.
  • Eyepatch of Power: He lacks an eye and wears an eyepatch.
  • Heel Realization: After several episodes of going through Heel–Face Revolving Door, he finally has one in Minstrel Krampus, when Hayley convinces him that family is the most important thing.
  • Jerkass: He wasn't caring of Stan when he was around.
  • Killed Off for Real: He is shot and killed at the beginning of "Ghost Dad".
  • Laser-Guided Karma: At the end of "Ghost Dad". After possessing Steve's body and trying to use him to rob a museum of sports memorabilia, his sprit ends up trapped in that same museum, surrounded by valuable objects that he can never touch.
  • Manipulative Bastard: When Jack returns to Stan's life, taking him out to a gun range. Jack talks Stan into joining him for a mission to, supposedly, stop terrorist activity. When they arrive at the "National Gallery of Art" Stan realizes that they are actually on a jewel heist and is betrayed by his father.
  • Pet the Dog: When he realized that Steve saw him as a greater role model than Stan he turned himself in to the police, telling Steve in "Jack's Back" that he'd never been a good father to Stan, but he wanted Stan to be a good father to Steve.
  • Series Continuity Error: Despite turning into Krampus in "Minstrel Krampus" and still remaining as such at the end of "Ninety North, Zero West", for some reason he's seen in his human form in "Klaustastrope.TV".
  • Strong Family Resemblance:
    • Jack looks remarkably like Stan aside from their different hair colors and the former having a smaller jaw and chin length.
    • Rusty looks almost exactly like Jack except for the hair color, ponytail, and that he has darker skin.
  • Took a Level in Jerkass: "Ghost Dad" not only shows him returning to his former life of crime (and getting killed for it), but when his spirit is brought to the Smith house, he does nothing but insult his family the entire time. And even worse, he decides to possess Steve's body and use it to rob the local sports museum, showing no regard at all for the grandson who had previously shown him the error of his ways.
  • Took a Level in Kindness: A mix of a Heel–Face Turn and becoming Krampus made him less of an overall asshole, especially when coming to the realization that dealing with bratty kids every Christmas was just not worth the effort.

    Betty Smith 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/american_dad_8x04_betty_roger_stan_cap_22_mid.jpg
Voiced by: Swoosie Kurtz

Stan’s somewhat needy mother.


  • Abusive Parents: Was emotionally manipulative towards Stan in his early years, guilt tripping him into taking his father's place for the sake of her own company. She also tricked him into mercy killing his own dog so they could live in a hotel that forbids them.
  • Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: She may act motherly and supportive, but in reality, she is quite self-serving and manipulative. In "American Stepdad", she acts as if she loves Roger and marries him, but she actually plans to kill him to claim live insurance from him. She also tricked Stan into killing his dog, saying he had an incurable illness, but it she actually made him do it because their new apartment building didn't allow dogs.
  • Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: She doesn’t appear anymore, except in the cannibal horde in “The Two Hundred” and in a memory of Stan’s in “The Life and Times of Stan Smith ”.
  • Dude Magnet: During Stan's childhood and after Jack had left them, she was asked out by many men.
  • Hoist by His Own Petard: After Jack left, Betty manipulated Stan into becoming dependent on her and even tricked him into killing his own dog because they couldn't bring it with them to their new apartment. The amount of mind games and smothering she used to make him do whatever she wanted backfired pretty badly on her when Stan started to kidnap every guy she dated out of fear they'd break her heart. If she hadn't warped Stan as a child, she might've been able to create a stable relationship for herself much sooner.
  • Hypocrite: After being dependent and manipulative towards Stan throughout his childhood, now she has a boyfriend, she thinks he needs to stop clinging onto her.
  • I Just Want to Be Loved: All Betty ever really wanted was for someone to love her, and if Stan hadn't tried to "protect" her all those years she could've finally found someone and stopped relying on Stan as an emotional crutch. Then again, if she hadn't emotionally abused Stan and turned him into her crutch to begin with she would've found someone sooner.
  • Karma Houdini: Manipulated Stan into doing all his father's duties and being completely dependent on her emotionally. Also outright tried to kill Roger for money, and as far as the public is concerned, she did it. Unlike Jack, she's never faced comeuppance and most of the time is treated as in the right. Even worse than all of that, she manipulated Stan into mercy killing his dog for no good reason.
  • My Beloved Smother: Subverted. Betty lives for Stan's attention but she's actually looking for a boyfriend so she can have somebody who'll make her happy. The relationship crosses into disturbing territory at times (especially in Stan's early years), but it's him that has the unhealthy obsession, not Betty.
    Stan: What do you do when your mom's unhappy? Jerry left her feeling crappy? Sing her a shanty nice and snappy! Wash her in the bathtub!

    Rusty 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sc325_0085v21.jpg
Voiced by: Lou Diamond Phillips

Stan's extremely wealthy Native American half brother. When their Great-Great Grandfather died, he left them to choose between $20,000 and a large amount of land in the desert. Stan took the money, and Rusty became insanely wealthy because he's able to sell $18,000,000 worth of copper every year.


  • Big Fancy House: He lives in a beautiful mansion built into the side of a rocky cliff in the middle of the desert. Highlights include a giant waterfall, a bar with a massive library of booze at hand, a kitchen with his own personal chefs, and his son's game console is a virtual reality room.
  • Inheritance Murder: At first, Stan simply switches places with Rusty by chloroforming him and his family. Rusty comes back, with the intent of killing Stan if he doesn't get off his land.
  • Literal-Minded: When he says that he'll kill Stan if he doesn't get off his land, he means that literally. After a helicopter crash forces the Smiths to walk through the desert for hours on end, Rusty still intends on killing Stan because he's still technically on his land, even though he's nowhere near Rusty's home.
  • Rejected Apology: He still threatens to kill Stan without giving him a chance to apologize.
  • Rich Bitch: At first, Rusty is very humble about his wealth, keeping it hidden from Stan. After Stan finds out about Rusty's wealth, he's starts rubbing it in Stan's face. Understandable, since Stan did the exact same thing every Thanksgiving when he was convinced Rusty was poor.
  • Secretly Wealthy: Stan had no idea of Rusty's wealth for many years. He was convinced Rusty and his family were poor, only to find out about their wealth when he attempts to take Steve to their home for Thanksgiving to show him a lesson in humility. Rusty has been doing the same for his son Glenn for years without Stan's knowledge.
  • Series Continuity Error: In "Meter Made", it's established that Rusty (not referred to by name) lives in Wisconsin. But in "There Will Be Bad Blood", it's revealed that he and his family live in Arizona.
  • Signature Laugh: His laughter sounds like stereotypical Native American chanting.
  • Strong Family Resemblance:
    • Between him and Stan, Rusty gets most of their father's physical looks (especially around the jaw and chin size), with the only difference being Rusty's darker skin, blacker hair, and hairstyle.
    • Following from the above, despite some physical differences, Rusty and Stan look a lot alike.
  • Worthless Yellow Rocks: Stan, his grandfather and great grandfather all saw the land as worthless. Rusty however found that it was rich in copper which gained him a fortune.

    Mah Mah & Bah Bah Ling 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/american_dad_s3e4_800x450_800x450_070720140331.jpg
Mah Mah voiced by: Amy Hill
Bah Bah voiced by: Tzi Ma

Francine’s adoptive parents.


  • Asian Rudeness: Both "Big Trouble in Little Langley" & "Kung Pao Turkey" are about them barging their way into the Smith's residence uninvited, enforcing their rules under Stan's roof, and using or destroying his stuff without his permission.
  • Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: Their brief cameos in "The Two Hundred" was the first time they've appeared since "Kung Pao Turkey" which aired a little more than two years earlier. Additionally, it was their first appearance since the show switched networks. They wouldn't appear again for nearly three years afterwards, and ironically not on the same show itself but instead in a brief crossover appearance in the Family Guy episode "No Giggity, No Doubt".
  • Cool Old Lady: When Mah Mah accidentally breaks Hayley's bong, she pulls out her own pipe and gives it to her, revealing that she also is The Stoner.
    "It really good. Make you cough a lot."
  • Devil's Advocate: Despite Mah Mah's dislike with Stan, in Spring Break Up, she told Francine that Stan was right to leave her because she stopped laughing at his jokes and listening to his stories. Mah Mah explained that the basis of a good marriage is taking the time to laugh at your spouses jokes and listen to their stories even if you've heard them a million times, because it shows you care and it makes them happy.
  • Foil: To Stan's parents. Mah Mah and Bah Bah adopted Francine at a young age and they both clearly love her and want her to be happy. Jack and Betty Smith are Stan's biological parents and they're both self-absorbed, abusive assholes whose abandonment (Jack) and emotional manipulation (Betty) warped Stan beyond repair. Francine's parents visited her every day until they could afford to adopt her, while Jack ran out on his family and Betty used Stan as a crutch and then practically cast him aside as soon as she began dating again.
  • Gass Hole: In Bah Bah's first appearance, Stan gets annoyed at his farting while wearing Stan's swim trunks. In "Spring Break Up", Francine says that she's going to have to "fart" him, squeezing his stomach to release excess gas.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Bah Bah really does care for his family, even Stan.
  • Miniature Senior Citizens: They're both very short compared to the Smiths.
  • No Name Given: Mah Mah and Bah Bah are simply the Chinese words for 'Mom' and 'Dad' respectively.
  • Obnoxious In-Laws: Subverted. They don't have any bad feelings for Stan, however whenever they show up they tend to take over the place. At the end of the episode, they also save Stan when the house catches fire, and her father expresses genuine fondness for him (saying that they don't have to worry about Francine's well-being because she married well). Stan's relationship with the Lings is shown to be much better in later episodes.
  • Pronouncing My Name for You: It's "Bah-ba" not "Baba", something he has to constantly correct Stan on.
  • The Thing That Would Not Leave: In "Big Trouble in Little Langley", they show up uninvited at the Smith household to stay there, take over the house, and use Stan's stuff without permission.

    Gwen Ling 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/gwen_ling_0.png
Voiced by: Uma Thurman

Mah Mah and Bah Bah Ling's natural daughter and Francine’s adopted sister. She remained unseen until "Now and Gwen", where she's revealed to be a criminal who uses Francine to cover for her.


  • Asian Airhead: According to Bah Bah, she's an idiot who "needs all the help she can get". Aside from lighting a cigarette in a gas-soaked room and failing math in high school, she's actually quite intelligent, cunning, and manipulative. That being said, she can be impulsive and make poor decisions, such as trying to rob some black market organ dealers.
  • Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: She last appeared in “The Two Hundred” where she is a cannibal.
  • Cool Big Sis: Was this to Francine in their teenage years, unfortunately this led to her taking the blame for her burning down the school, ruining her life and leading to her resenting her into adulthood.
  • Con Woman: She sold fake cellphones to the elderly and was holding a sweatshop making the fake cellphones in the Smiths' home.
  • Distracted by the Sexy: Every time she's mentioned, Stan has to go on about how hot she is, to Francine's annoyance.
  • The Ghost: Until "Now and Gwen", she was only mentioned. This is because she's a convicted felon.
  • Heel–Face Door-Slam: Just as she and Francine seem to have finally made peace with each other, they accidentally burn down their old school. Gwen ends up in jail as a result, while Francine only receives a suspended sentence. Gwen swears Revenge on Francine over this.
  • Informed Flaw: Her father thinks she's an idiot, but that appears to be because she's a Chinese girl who's bad at math. When she finally does appear, she's revealed to be very cunning and street-smart, but also prone to poor impulsive decisions, like suddenly deciding to run out on a black market organ sale with both the money and the organ. If Francine hadn't been there to help her escape, the prospective buyers would have surely killed her for it.
    Stan: "It's heartbreaking when kids don't conform to cultural stereotypes."
  • Manipulative Bitch: She easily convinces Francine to let her do anything, knowing she will bail her out. She does this because Francine burned the school while she smoked in the lab room with tons of flammable elements and she took the blame. But she still does manipulate her until Hayley convinces her to leave, but not before she tries to frame Francine by burning down the school.
  • Ms. Fanservice: She is very sexy, which Stan makes note of constantly when she's around, and wears a Little Black Dress in "Now and Gwen".
  • Never My Fault: By the end of "Now and Gwen", she receives a six year prison sentence after she and Francine accidentally burn down the school. She blames Francine for this (resenting how Stan used his CIA connections to get her a suspended sentence), despite the fact that her sentence was the result of her knowingly and repeatedly violating the terms of her parole.
  • Older Than They Look: She's older than Francine, but like her sister, Gwen could pass for a girl in her twenties.
  • Pet the Dog: When Steve, pretending to be mentally disabled, wants to hug her (so he could grab her backside and put his face in her chest), she acts nice to him, not knowing of his true perverted intentions.
  • Retcon: Prior to "Now and Gwen" dialogue made Gwen sound like a harmless Brainless Beauty. When she finally appeared in the flesh she turned out to be beautiful, but not particularly dumb at all and an actual criminal. It was also said that Gwen was younger than Francine by three years. Come the episode where she appears, and now she's the older one as she was a senior in high school while Francine was only a freshman.
  • Thanks for the Mammary: The B-Plot of "Now and Gwen" has Stan doing his best to "innocently" cop a feel by hugging her when she shows up. Steve wants in on this, so Stan teaches him how to get it done. Steve screws up his attempts and Gwen is convinced he is "special". He uses this to his advantage to finally hug her tight, nest his face right into her cleavage, and grab her butt in the process.

    Nicholas & Cassandra Dawson 

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/dawsons.png
Nicholas voiced by: Jeff Perry ("Big Trouble in Little Langley"), Corey Stoll ("Family Plan")
Cassandra voiced by: Holland Taylor

Francine’s biological parents.


  • Bus Crash: We learn in "Family Plan" that Cassandra had committed suicide via hanging after her last appearance in "Shallow Vows" over seven and a half years prior.
  • Disproportionate Retribution: In "Family Plan", Nicholas orders all of his family (which includes Francine) to fight to the death with the last person standing becoming the sole heir to the family fortune. Why? He was fed up with everyone using their own data plans instead of the family plan that he set up.
  • Faux Affably Evil: Emphasis on Faux (in Nicholas' case, not so much after "Family Plan" where he's just outright evil), they may act polite and sophisticated couple but willing to leave anyone for shallow and trivial reasons.
  • Flanderization: While Nicholas was always a bit of a jerkass considering things like the reason why he abandoned Francine, "Family Plan" turns him into an outright monster by the fact that he orders everyone in his family to fight each other to the death all because he was angry that they were using their individual data plans instead of the home network (though it's implied that he's gone crazy since his wife died, as he's shown doing things like eating cat food, and he also has a brief My God, What Have I Done? moment when it seems like no one managed to survive the battle, leaving him completely alone).
  • I Was Quite a Looker: Cassandra, who back in the day looked near identical to how her daughter looks now.
  • Jerkass:
    • They abandoned Francine so they could fly first class on an airplane.
    • They also left Stan to die when he was trapped inside his burning house because they didn't want to be a liability.
    • Nicholas ordered everyone in his family to fight each other to the death because he was upset over them using their own data plans instead of the home network.
  • Killed Offscreen: We learn in "Family Plan" that Cassandra committed suicide via hanging sometime between this episode and "Shallow Vows".
  • Put on a Bus: Haven't appeared since their first appearance. Justified, considering Stan never introduced them to Francine.
    • They did eventually reappear for a very brief cameo in "Shallow Vows" where they appeared at Stan and Francine's vow renewal.
    • Nicholas reappeared in "Family Plan" but not Cassandra due to said episode revealing that she committed suicide via hanging herself.
  • Strong Family Resemblance: As mentioned above, Cassandra looked identical to Francine in her youth. Similarly, Francine's older self in "Fartbreak Hotel" bares a strong resemblance to how her birth mother looks presently.
  • Took a Level in Jerkass: Nicholas. He wasn't the nicest character to begin with, but the Nicolas seen in "Big Trouble in Little Langley" wouldn't have forced everyone in his family to fight each other to the death over something so minor and petty (like using their own separate phone networks instead of the one he set up).

    Steve-arino 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/steve_a_reno.png
Voiced by: Scott Grimes

A clone of Steve created by Stan and raised exclusively by him for awhile to see if he or Francine was the better parent. Likewise, Steve was raised only by Francine in the meantime.


  • Asshole Victim: Nobody will mourn him (Stan mourned way more the loss of his sneakers).
  • Ax-Crazy: It’s clear he’s very mentally ill considering the fact that he butchers cats for fun and was about to move on to people before Stan and Francine stopped him.
  • Broken Ace: Under Stan's tutelage, he becomes smarter, more athletic, and more motivated than the real Steve. Unfortunately, Stan constantly pressuring him to succeed him eventually drove him mad.
  • Evil Counterpart: To Steve. Though he starts out the same as him in every way, Stan's authoritative parenting style drove him insane over the course of 3 months and he ended up as a calculating, cat-killing psychopath. He also attempted to murder the original Steve, but was defeated by Stan.
  • Evil Twin: He's an evil clone of Steve who demonstrates what Steve would be like if Stan raised him without Francine.
  • Freudian Excuse: He started out exactly like Steve. But Stan's overbearing parenting style made him into a sociopath, the constant pressure to succeed driving him mad.
  • Gone Horribly Wrong: For Stan, who wanted to prove his parenting style was superior. That same style turned Steve-arino into a monster.
  • Jerkass: To the point of being a sadistic sociopath.
  • Karmic Death: He ends up being shot by one of the cats he tortured. And that cat happens to be "Simon", the one who keeps attacking the real Steve.
  • Knight of Cerebus: He is probably the most evil character in the series and his cruelty is played seriously.
  • One-Shot Character: He only lasts one episode.
  • Sadist: Yes, a very sadistic cat killer.
  • See You in Hell: He says this to his former feline victim as he’s poised to kill him.
  • The Sociopath: Stan’s brutal treatment of him has stripped him of all empathy, given him a manipulative streak a thousand miles wide and has turned him very Ax-Crazy.

    Henry Fischer 
Voiced By: Clancy Brown

Jeff's abusive, loutish father.


  • Abusive Parents: He constantly insults Jeff to his face, who assumes Henry is joking. He later tries to get Jeff arrested for possessing marijuana for the reward money, and even plants the weed in his van to make it happen.
  • Half-Witted Hillbilly: He's a farmer living in rural Florida, and despite his pretensions to the contrary he's just as dumb as Jeff.
  • Hate Sink: His entire character revolves around him being an abusive and selfish father with no redeeming traits. His sheer selfishness is played for humor, but he's clearly intended to be hated.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Jerk: He treats Jeff so poorly even Stan is horrified, but Jeff insists Henry secretly cares about him. It's later revealed that Henry not only plans to turn Jeff into Florida Police to collect the bounty but was the one who planted the weed in his van in the first place.
    Jeff: You're wrong about my dad! He cares more about me than anything.
    Henry: (comes out with police officers and points them to Jeff) There's your criminal, just give me the money. That's all I care about, money. Not Jeff, money.
    Jeff: See! Wait, am I Jeff or Money? Oh man, I'm Jeff.
  • Like Father, Like Son: Henry proves he can be just as stupid as his son, as when the police heard him muttering about trying to kill Stan and Roger, he admits it because he can't prove it because he's not wearing a wire. He point blank reminds him he's a cop as he arrests him.

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