When i was little my dad worked at the Chrysler/Dodge/Peugot Dealership on Coliseum Blvd in Fort Wayne as a car salesman. he would drive from Warsaw every day except for Thursday (his day off) and some Sundays. can you imagine! i wouldnt like that drive. anyway, one of the perks that came with his job was that he would take me, my brother and sister to the Fort Wayne Komets hockey game. yes, to see a hockey game was exciting and all but to be a Superstar at the game was even better! During a few of the half-times he would drive a dodge minivan (or miscellaneous other chrysler vehicles) out on the ice and we’d get to ride along. we’d sit in the van with the doors open and wave to all the fans. it was awesome! one particular time the Hamburglar and Grimace road with us! That was spectacular! I still remember the feeling of being the luckiest kid alive to ride in a van with the McDonald’s guys. i think i recall my dad taking us to get cheeseburgers on the ride home. aaah, my fifteen minutes of fame. i can just say that my childhood was the best….thanks dad and mom! what was your fifteen minutes of fame?
Useless McDonald’s Character Facts:
Big Mac: In addition to McDonald’s signature sandwich, Big Mac was the name of a character in McDonaldland. He was similar to Mayor McCheese in that he had a large Big Mac for a head, except he was the chief of police and as such he wore a constable uniform.
Birdie the Early Bird was the first identifiably female character, introduced in 1980 to promote the company’s new breakfast items. She is a yellow bird wearing a pink jumpsuit and flight cap and scarf.
Captain Crook was a pirate and is similar in appearance to the famed Captain Hook from Peter Pan. Unlike the Hamburglar, this villain spent his time trying to steal Filet-O-Fish sandwiches from citizens of McDonaldland while avoiding being caught by Big Mac, the Chief of police of McDonaldland
CosMc was a temporary character from McDonaldland. He was featured in a series of McDonald’s commercials in 1990 when the McDonaldland gang went to the moon
Fry Kids are characters used to promote McDonald’s french fries. When they first appeared, they were called Gobblins and liked to steal and gobble up the other characters’ french fries.
Grimace is a large, purple being of indeterminate species with short arms and legs; he is known for his monotonous face and slow-witted demeanor and for stealing shakes. He was originally and evil guy with many arms but turned good in later years and was reduced to 2 arms.
The Hamburger Patch is part of the fictional city of McDonaldland where McDonald’s hamburgers “grew” like fruit on plants from the Hamburger Patch. Even though hamburgers in McDonaldland were anthropomorphized and spoke, they were picked by characters such as Ronald McDonald and the Hamburglar for consumption.
The Hamburglar character was another thief that dressed in a black-and-white striped shirt and pants, a red cape, and a wide-brimmed hat and whose primary object of theft was McDonalds hamburger from the Hamburger Patch.
The Happy Meal Gang (Cheeseburger, soft drink, and fries, all regular size) (later joined by the McNugget Buddies)
Iam Hungry: was a short-lived McDonaldland character. He was introduced in 1998 and dropped in the early 2000s. The character was a floating green fuzzball with orange arms and a monstrous face.
Mayor McCheese has an enormous cheeseburger for a head, and sports a top hat, a diplomat’s sash, and a pair of pince-nez spectacles. He is portrayed as a giggly, bumbling, somewhat incompetent mayor with a wavering, high-pitched voice that is reminiscent to that of comic actor Ed Wynn.
The Professor, a mad scientist type character in a lab coat. He was introduced in 1971.
Ronald McDonald, the primary icon of McDonald’s characters.
Uncle O’Grimacey was created for an advertising narrative of the McDonald’s fast-food restaurant chain both in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day and to mark the annual appearance of the Shamrock Shake.
