Pilot (American Dad!)

The pilot episode of American Dad! originally aired on Fox in the United States on February 6, 2005, just after Super Bowl XXXIX. The episode was written by series co-creators Seth MacFarlane, Mike Barker and Matt Weitzman. The episode was leaked onto the internet before its supposed premiere on FOX. The episode features a guest appearance by Carmen Electra.

Seth MacFarlane, who is best known for creating Family Guy, stated that he and Weitzman came up with the series after the 2000 United States presidential election. Initially, the series was to replace Family Guy after its cancellation but it was revived after the pilot episode aired. Because of this, MacFarlane chose to focus on Family Guy and handed creative control over to Barker and Weitzman. After the pilot aired, the rest of the first season began on May 1, 2005, on Fox's Animation Domination lineup which had its debut on that date.

The pilot follows Stan Smith, who rigs a school election to make his son Steve popular; but Steve becomes corrupt with power. The pilot received mixed reviews from critics and fans, with many people calling American Dad! a rip off of Family Guy. Despite the mixed reviews, it was a ratings success. According to the Nielsen ratings, it was viewed by 15.10 million people in the United States, and acquired a 7.5 rating in the 18-49 demographic.