'Family Guy' creator Seth MacFarlane to host Oscars

"Family Guy" creator Seth MacFarlane will host the 2013 Oscars ceremony in Los Angeles.

First-time Academy Awards producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron made the announcement Monday.

Zadan and Meron said they're "thrilled" about their choice.

"His performing skills blend perfectly with our ideas for making the show entertaining and fresh," the producers said in a statement.

MacFarlane is best known for his envelope-pushing animated TV shows "Family Guy" and "American Dad." He made his big-screen directorial debut earlier this year with "Ted," which took in more than $420 million at the box office. The 38-year-old entertainer also hosted the season opener of "Saturday Night Live" last month and released an album of big-band tunes from the 1940s and `50s last year.

This is his first time hosting the Academy Awards.

MacFarlane called the opportunity "an overwhelming privilege."

"My thoughts upon hearing the news were, one, I will do my utmost to live up to the high standards set forth by my predecessors; and two, I hope they don't find out I hosted the Charlie Sheen Roast," he said Monday.

Nominations for the 85th annual Oscars will be announced on Jan. 10 - nearly a week earlier than typically revealed and coming ahead of the Golden Globe Awards. The Oscars will be presented Feb. 24 at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center in Los Angeles.

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Online:

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