Entertainment

‘FAMILY GUY’ BACK FROM THE DEAD

FOX’S raunchy “Family Guy” has been brought back to life after seemingly being banished from the network.

Fox has unexpectedly picked up the animated series for next year, but due to the show’s lengthy production schedule won’t be receiving the 13-episode order until next July.

That’s good news for “Family Guy,” which appeared to be left for dead after two seasons.

The show weathered a roller-coaster ride of controversy, mediocre ratings, bad reviews and enough prime-time schedule changes to confuse even the most diligent viewers.

“Family Guy” has been on life-support since last spring, although its production office had continued to produce six new episodes it owed to Fox.

The outlook was so grim that many of the show’s staffers found other jobs – and are now contractually bound to other networks and other series.

“Family Guy” follows the misadventures of the Griffens, a politically incorrect, ultra-dysfunctional Rhode Island family led by an overweight, Homer Simpson-like father named Peter and an alcoholic talking dog.

As the rest of the family (including two somewhat goofy teens) charge through life like a bull in a china shop, Peter’s wife, Lois, remains blissfully unaware that her evil-genius infant son, Stewie, is bent on killing her and taking over the world.

When the show first aired about two years ago after the Super Bowl, it was clear that “Family Guy” was designed to shock.

Drawing heavily on pop-culture references, it tweaked and insulted everyone from the Kennedys (a character shot the head off a JFK Pez dispenser) to “Star Trek” legend William Shatner – and was subsequently ripped by critics for using poor taste to score laughs.

Since then, especially this summer, its ratings have not been huge – but remained steady.

“Family Guy” even managed to spark a bizarre lawsuit against the show’s 26-year-old creator, Seth MacFarlane.

MacFarlane was sued last year by his former prep-school headmaster, Richardson Schell, for allegedly stealing the Griffen family name from Schell’s secretary.

Even before the lawsuit was filed, Schell lead a mildly successful advertiser boycott against the show, never mentioning his personal connection to MacFarlane until much later.

Meanwhile, Fox is mulling the possibility of airing episodes of its powerhouse hit comedy, “Malcolm in the Middle,” twice a week on Sundays and Wednesdays.

Network officials declined to comment yesterday.

Fox is a division of News Corp., which also owns The Post.