It seems like an improbable connection, but Seth MacFarlane, creator of “Family Guy,” ”American Dad!” and “The Cleveland Show,” all animated TV shows that are not shy about crude humor, has donated funds to the Library of Congress so it can acquire the personal papers of Carl Sagan, the scientist and astronomer, library officials announced Wednesday.
Mr. MacFarlane never owned Sagan’s papers, but he covered the undisclosed costs of donating them to the library. The papers filled more than 800 filing-cabinet drawers and include correspondence with other scientists, drafts of Mr. Sagan’s academic articles, as well as screenplay drafts for the movie “Contact,” which was based on Mr. Sagan’s novel. His grade-school report cards and a drawing he made as a child about the future of space exploration were also included. “All I did was write a check, but it’s something that was, to me, worth every penny,” MacFarlane told The Associated Press by phone from Los Angeles. “He’s a man whose life’s work should be accessible to everybody.”
Mr. MacFarlane said he watched “Cosmos” as a child and read all of Mr. Sagan’s books. “He was an enormous and profound influence in my life,” Mr. MacFarlane said. “He played an essential role — some would say the only role at the time — in bridging the gap between the academic community and the general public.”
Mr. MacFarlane met Mr. Sagan’s widow and collaborator, Ann Druyan, at an event a few years ago that brought together Hollywood screenwriters and directors with scientists. They agreed to collaborate on a follow-up to “Cosmos,” with Mr. MacFarlane serving as producer. Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson will host the series, which is scheduled to begin production this fall.
Mr. MacFarlane once included a gag on his animated TV comedy “Family Guy” about an “edited for rednecks” version of Carl Sagan’s “Cosmos,” TV miniseries. It featured an animated Mr. Sagan dubbed over to say that the earth is “hundreds and hundreds” of years old. Mr. Sagan, who died in 1996, spoke to mass audiences about the mysteries of the universe and the origins of life.
As for Mr. MacFarlane, his first live-action film, “Ted,” about a childhood teddy bear who comes alive, opens in theaters on Friday.
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