McDonald’s Characters – The Most Popular And Weirdest From The Golden Arches
Mcdonald's characters include Ronald McDonald, Grimace, Hamburglar, and many others who've become part of the pop culture narrative.
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When the McDonald Brothers, Richard, and Maurice, first conceived McDonald’s back in 1940, they had no inkling that it would come close to the juggernaut it is today. It wasn’t until Ray Kroc joined the brothers in 1955, eventually buying them out, that they saw the true power that the McDonald’s characters and brand would become.
Because it wasn’t only the burgers and French fries that captured the nation, and eventually the world, but it was also the McDonald’s characters, led by Ronald McDonald, that had a big say in McDonald’s popularity.
THE FIRST MCDONALDS CHARACTER WAS RONALD MCDONALD IN 1963
Since Ronald McDonald’s introduction in 1963, he has become one of the most popular characters ever created, not just a McDonald’s character, but any character. The red-headed clown instantly became the face of McDonald’s and soon, he wouldn’t be alone. So, let’s take a look at the many McDonald’s characters, some that have stood the test of time, and others whose time was cut short for various reasons.
Ronald McDonald enjoyed a solo run for a number of years before the company decided to capitalize on his popularity. So, beginning in 1970, more McDonald’s characters were slowly introduced to the public. Over the next two years, eight new McDonald’s characters were added to McDonaldland.
We have tracked down as many of the McDonald’s characters that we could find who have appeared over the many years. Some have enjoyed time on commercials, while others have been part of TV shows like The Wacky World of Ronald McDonald. Some of these characters will be very familiar, while others you may have never even heard of.
RONALD MCDONALD
The big guy. Big Red. The clown that started it all – well almost.
Before there was Ronald, there was Bozo the Clown. His name may be familiar to some of you out there as Bozo, at the time, was one of the biggest hits on television.
In fact, Willard Scott (another name that may sound familiar as he was one of the most popular television personalities when he became the weatherman on The Today Show) was not only the very first Ronald McDonald, but he was the creator of Ronald as well.
Scott, who sadly passed away a year ago at the age of 87, once spoke about Ronald McDonald in his book, Joy of Living. “At the time, Bozo was the hottest children’s show on the air. You could probably have sent Pluto the Dog or Dumbo the Elephant over and it would have been equally as successful. But I was there, and I was Bozo … There was something about the combination of hamburgers and Bozo that was irresistible to kids … That’s why when Bozo went off the air a few years later, the local McDonald’s people asked me to come up with a new character to take Bozo’s place. So, I sat down and created Ronald McDonald.”
On television (tv shows and commercials) there have been a total of eight Ronald McDonald’s starting with Scott. King Moody enjoyed the longest run at the red-headed clown, taking over in 1969 and enjoying a 16-year run up through 1985. Presently, Brad Lennon is playing the popular McDonald’s character and has been since 2014.
THE HAMBURGLAR
Along with Ronald McDonald (and possibly Grimace, who we’ll talk about next), the Hamburglar may be the most popular of the McDonald’s characters, who may also be one who has gone through the most changes. Debuting in 1971, the Hamburglar had one job and one job only – steal hamburgers. He was Ronald McDonald’s foil and was great at it.
The Hamburglar didn’t resemble the one we know today. The first time this McDonald’s character was seen, he was old, had gray hair, and a long nose. He also wore a shirt that read “Lone Jogger,” which is what he was called before his persona changed to the Hamburglar.
Perhaps the “Lone Jogger” just didn’t jive with customers, but for whatever reason, he quickly morphed into the gibberish-talking Hamburglar who was always on the hunt for McDonald’s burgers.
In the early commercials, Hamburglar was typically joined by another early, popular McDonald’s character, Captain Crook, who would be on hand to help translate Hamburglar’s gibberish language (“robble robble”). Although he went from the Lone Jogger to Hamburglar, he kept the same facial features.
The Hamburglar kept that look for well over a dozen years and then in 1985, went under a facial reconstruction. Instead of the old man with a long nose, the Hamburglar was turned into more of a Dennis the Menace character with his face becoming child-like, hair turning to red, and he was given the ability to speak. The new Hamburglar, complete with a black cape and a shorter-brimmed hat was a hit.
But times were changing for McDonald’s, which also meant change for McDonald’s characters. The Hamburglar was one who felt the change the most as he began to get phased out of McDonald’s promotions. By the time we reached the 2000s, the Hamburglar was pretty much null and void.
Into hiding he went (not retired) and it took a long time to dust off his mask and hat. In 2015, McDonald’s decided it was time to bring back the Hamburglar. This time, though, he was no longer a costumed McDonald’s character, but instead a real person, much like Ronald. He still appeared with a hat and a black mask covering his eyes, but he was as real as real could be.
At the time, McDonald’s VP of marketing, Joel Yashinsky explained the popular McDonald’s character’s return, “We felt it was time to debut a new look for the Hamburglar after he’s been out of the public eye all these years. He’s had some time to grow up a bit and has been busy raising a family in the suburbs and his look has evolved over time.” Eh, we prefer some “robble, robble,” thank you very much.
GRIMACE
Another one of the OG McDonald’s characters. Debuting in 1971, Grimace is unmistakable as the big, purple…thing, who first appeared as the “Evil Grimace” with two pairs of arms. He used those arms to swipe both milkshakes and soda pops but after two years, McDonald’s decided to do a little refurbishing. In 1973, Grimace reappeared as the loveable good guy…thing we see today and hasn’t changed much since then.
As the Grimace character evolved, he went from “evil” to “comic foil.” He would always be the clumsy one who would make commercial life for Ronald a little more difficult than it should have been. It was always in good fun.
MAYOR MCCHEESE
Another one of the OG McDonald’s characters came into existence in 1971. He was hard to miss as he sported a huge cheeseburger head with a top hat. The good Mayor also wore a diplomatic sash and a pair of spectacles on his big old noggin and his character lasted until the mid-80s.
OFFICER BIG MAC
One more OG McDonald’s character who appeared as the new burger itself appeared on McDonald’s menu. His resemblance was more toward Mayor McCheese’s as the good officer had a huge Big Mac for his head. He spent most of his time chasing the Hamburglar and Captain Crook which lasted until 2008.
CAPTAIN CROOK
An OG on the Hamburglar “bad” scale. A Captain Hook (Disney’s Peter Pan) wannabe was on board much like the Hamburglar, but instead of craving the burgers, Captain Crook fancied himself the Filet-O-Fish. He was also there to translate for the Hamburglar.
THE PROFESSOR
The last of the OG McDonald’s characters. The Professor arrived in 1971 wearing his lab coat and becoming McDonaldland’s resident inventor and researcher. By the time the 1980s rolled around, the Professor went through a redesign (new mustache and lightbulb-topped helmet) and was one of McDonald’s main characters.
GOBBLINS/FRY KIDS
They could be considered OG as they arrived on the scene in 1972 as Gobblins. Their job then, and after they were renamed to Fry Kids, was to promote McDonald’s French fries, not that they ever truly needed promoting. They were called Gobblins early on because they were there to steal and “gobble” up others’ French fries.
After Gobblins, they were renamed Fry Guys in 1983. That lasted for a few years when in 1987, these McDonald’s characters became the Fry Kids. They also made it to 2008.
BIRDIE THE EARLY BIRD
Birdie came to be as a McDonald’s character in 1980 and was the very first identifiably female character. As her name suggests, she is a big yellow bird (hmmm, sounds familiar) who wears a pink jumpsuit, a flight cap, and a scarf. One early commercial explained Birdie’s creation as a giant egg falling from the sky into McDonaldland and Ronald showing it a little bit of love as it lands.
THE HAPPY MEAL GANG
These McDonald’s characters began to appear infrequently in 1984. They consisted of a hamburger, French fries, and a soft drink, things you’d find in a Happy Meal. In 1989, they were joined by the McNugget Buddies.
UNCLE O’GRIMACEY
When McDonald’s introduced the Shamrock shake, they needed a character who would help promote the green milkshake. Uncle O’Grimacey was created in 1977 and through 1985, he helped McDonald’s promote the shake and celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. As you would expect, instead of being big and purple like Grimace, Uncle O’Grimacey is big and green.
COSMC
As a McDonald’s character, Cosmc didn’t last long. He made his debut in 1980 as an alien who wore an overgrown space suit and spoke like a surfer dude. Cosmc lasted until 1985, though he was brought back briefly in 1999 when the McDonaldland gang took their trip to the moon.
THE MCNUGGET BUDDIES
The McNugget Buddies came along in 1989. They had the appearance of large McNuggets that had large chicken beaks, chicken wings, and wore cowboy boots. They joined the Happy Meal Gang upon their arrival.
TRASH CANS
The OG twin trash cans. They spoke and for them to get fed, these McDonald’s characters needed to have garbage put inside them. They lasted 15 years before McDonald’s sent them to pasture.
LESSER KNOWN MCDONALD’S CHARACTERS INCLUDE BERNICE AND VULTURE
BERNICE
This McDonald’s character lived a long McDonald’s life, though she is hardly remembered. Introduced in 1992, Bernice lasted until 2008 and was often found eating the inedible in McDonaldland. During the three-part commercial, Ronald McDonald Makin’ Movies, Bernice was seen eating the script.
IAM HUNGRY
Talk about a short-lived McDonald’s character. Iam was introduced in 1998 and lasted until 2001. The character was a floating green fuzzball that was equipped with orange arms.
MAC TONIGHT
Mac Tonight was not an overused McDonald’s character but was a pretty solid one. It resembled the moon and was on board to help promote McDonald’s by riffing catchy McDonald’s songs.
SUNDAE
Fun fact with Sundae. This was Ronald’s dog and only appeared in The Wacky Adventures of Ronald McDonald and was performed by the late Verne Troyer (Mini-Me in the Austin Powers films). This was the only time fans would see this McDonald’s character.
VULTURE – Vulture never had a name but was featured in a number of McDonald’s commercials. In one commercial, Vulture gave Ronald one of its feathers to help out Grimace, whose voice was stuck in a sleeping dragon. Vulture also spoke in a very monotone voice.
MIKE THE MICROPHONE – This McDonald’s character was a one-time-only creation. Mike the Microphone was created for the Kid Rhino albums (Ronald McDonald presents Silly Sing-Along and Ronald Makes It Magic). He has never been seen nor heard from again.
GRIDDLER – As the name might suggest, this McDonald’s character was invented to help promote the McGriddle. He last three years, 2003-2006. His main purpose, much like the Hamburglar, was to steal McGriddle’s from Ronald and all his friends.
HAPPY – One of the longer-lasting McDonald’s characters. This one came out shaped like a Happy Meal box and was always full of energy and fun. Introduced in 1994, the character lasted until 2020.
SPEEDEE – We saved this one for last because he was actually the very first McDonald’s character. Speedee was the first mascot, well before Ronald McDonald was born, and was often seen holding a sign that claimed, “I’m Speedee.” Some stores still even have Speedee representing them.
THEY ALL LIVED IN MCDONALDLAND
All McDonald’s characters were part of the fictional McDonaldland, a place that had a town, a forest, the sea, and even outer space. McDonald’s characters roamed in and out of these places that also saw specific areas like Grimace’s Island, the moon, a western-theme area, Ronald’s home, and a number of portals that would take McDonald’s characters to real-world McDonald’s restaurants.
There have been a number of McDonald’s characters that have come and gone but the years have been good for a number of McDonald’s characters. Ronald continues to carry the torch for the fast-food giant and that doesn’t appear like it will be changing. Although McDonald’s has backed away from using characters (other than Ronald) in the recent past, don’t be surprised if they dust off a few of the OG’s in the near future.
