The Restless Mind of a Complicated Cartoonist

6:00 AM PDT 10/11/2011 by Lacey Rose

Seth MacFarlane secretly wishes "Family Guy" would end as he expands his multibillion-dollar empire with "The Flintstones," a shockingly well-received singing career, talk of a potential "Star Trek" reboot and an astonishing ambition to not be pigeonholed.

It's a steamy day in early September and the Family Guy writers and producers are huddled in the lobby of a nondescript third-floor office in Los Angeles. 20th Century Fox TV chairman Gary Newman checks his watch while his partner Dana Walden makes small talk with Fox's Kevin Reilly and Peter Rice. They're all waiting on the man of the hour: Seth MacFarlane, who's 20 minutes late.