Peter Löwenbräu Griffin Sr. (born Justin Peter Griffin) was a fictional character and the main protagonist of the American animated sitcom Family Guy. He was voiced by the series' creator, Seth MacFarlane, and first appeared on television, along with the rest of the Griffin family, in the 15-minute pilot pitch of Family Guy on December 20, 1998. Peter was created and designed by MacFarlane himself. MacFarlane was asked to pitch a pilot to the Fox Broadcasting Company based on Larry & Steve, a short made by MacFarlane which featured a middle-aged character named Larry and an intellectual dog, Steve. After the series pilot was given the green light, the Griffin family appeared in the episode "Death Has a Shadow". Peter was married to Lois and is the father of Meg, Chris, and Stewie. He also had a dog named Brian, with whom he is best friends. He worked at a toy factory and at Quahog's Brewery. Peter's voice was inspired by the security guards that MacFarlane heard at his school. His appearance was a redesign of the protagonist Larry from MacFarlane's previous animated short films The Life of Larry and Larry & Steve. He appeared in several pieces of Family Guy merchandise, including toys, T-shirts, and video games, and he has made crossover appearances in other shows, including The Simpsons, Drawn Together, American Dad!, and Family Guys spin-off series The Cleveland Show. Role in Family Guy Peter Griffin was a middle-class Irish American who was in his early 40s (usually stated to be between the ages of 42 to 43), who was a bespectacled, obese blue-collar worker with a prominent Rhode Island and Eastern Massachusetts accent. Peter's age has never been officially confirmed and has fluctuated. Peter and his wife Lois had three children: Meg, Chris, and Stewie. He also had two deceased children, Peter Jr. who was shaken to death, and Dave, Stewie's twin who is implied to have been killed by Stewie during childbirth. He was the illegitimate son of Thelma Griffin and Mickey McFinnigan, and was raised by Thelma and his stepfather Francis Griffin. It's uncertain if Peter's legal parents were married before he was conceived, however, as Peter had a flashback in which Francis directly tells him, "I'm not your father!" in the episode "Peter's Two Dads" in which Peter realized that Francis isn't his true father, implying he knew that Peter isn't his biological son.