"Death Has a Shadow" is the pilot episode of the American animated television series Family Guy. Written by series creator Seth MacFarlane and directed by Peter Shin, a rough-cut version of this episode originally aired on December 20, 1998, on the Fox network in the United States; a final version was later aired as a sneak peek of the show on January 31, 1999, following Super Bowl XXXIII. In the episode, Peter loses his job after drinking too much at a stag party and falls asleep at work. He signs up for welfare to keep his wife Lois from finding out but gets much more money than he expected. After spending his money foolishly, Lois finds out and Peter decides to dump it from a blimp at the Super Bowl. He is arrested for welfare fraud and must await his family's rescue, as well as various