The History & Downfall of McDonaldland and the Disney-McDonalds Happy Meal
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- čas přidán 15. 03. 2021
- Explore the history & ultimate downfall of McDonaldland and The Disney-McDonald's Happy Meal, McDonald’s magical world & ad campaign that brought fame and fortune to the iconic fast food franchise. From the origins of Ronald McDonald, the McDonald’s Merchandise craze, the McDonalds Disney partnership and Happy Meal Toys and how it ultimately came to an end.
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SOURCES:
Filming In McDonaldland:
FilmingInMcDonaldland
Instagram - filming_in_mcdonaldland
@LAHistory - Twitter
CLIPS USED (in order of appearance):
NOTE I wound up using so many clips from so many different sources, not all of them could fit in the description. The rest are included within the Pinned Comment in the Comment Section.
Super Size Me - Samuel Goldwyn Films
Roadside Attractions
McDonald Ad Compilation - MacTonight8 - • MCDONALDLAND AD COMPIL...
McDonald’s 1980s Commercial - FM1156 - • McDonald's Family Rest...
McDonald’s Set Makers Promo - panaflex - • McDonalds-Setmakers-19...
Burger Chef Star Wars - Sean Mc - • Video
McDonald’s Dick Tracy Crimestopper Game - Dino Drac’s Retro Commercials! - • McDonald's Dick Tracy ...
Vintage 1980’s Fast Food - lxAMxABU - • Vintage Commercials 19...
The Story Behind The Happy Meal - Bernstein-Rein - • The Story Behind the H...
ABC 1979 Commercial Breaks - MicroJow’s Retro Warehouse - • Video
McDonald’s Disney’s 101 Dalmations - Rewind Me - • McDonald's Disney's 10...
Ray Crok Documentary - A&E Television Networks - • Video
Ray Kroc Interview - Giorgia Di lorio - • RAY KROC INTERVIEW
Television Commercials 1960s - A/V Geeks - • Television Commercials...
Sugar Crips Commercial - Commercial Collections - • Sugar Crisp Commercial...
Bozo’s Circus - Tracy Utzmyers - • Bozo's Circus
Bozo The Clown - VintageTelevision - • WHDH-TV "Bozo the Clow...
The Joy Boys - Mr. DC Memories (Courtesy: Tom Buckley, "eyeontv”) - • The Joy Boys - Final S...
McDonaldland Commercials (1) - archive.org/details/McDonalds...
McDonaldland Commercials (2) - archive.org/details/McDonalds...
McDonald’s Commercials 1960s - Commercial Collections - • McDonald's Commercials...
70s Commercials - 80sCommercialVault - • 70's Commercials Vol. 14
I Love 70’s Commercials - haikarate4 - • I Love 70's Commercial...
60s & 70s Cereal Commercials - ToonORama - • Cereal commercials fro...
Making of a McDonald’s Commercial - MediaBurnArchive - • The Making of a McDona...
McDonaldland Commercial HD - TESTMACORONI - • Video
H.R. Pufnstuf - CBS
McDonald’s Great Race - Bill McDonald - • McDonalds - Great Race...
1978 McDonalds Commercial - ChuckLeon - • 1978 McDonalds Commerc...
Burger Chef Commercials - BHimes76 - • Burger Chef Commercial...
Burger King Star Wars - Near Mint Fanboys - • Vintage Commercials fo...
Big Mac Commercial - Bionic Disco - • McDonald's 'Big Mac So...
Introducing the Happy Meal Commercial - Vintage Tv Commercials - • 1979 McDonald's Happy ...
80’s McDonalds commercials - haikarate4 - • Old McDonalds Commerci... - • I Love 80's Commercial...
McDonalds commercials 1984 to 1985 - Commercial Collections - • McDonald's Commercials...
1982 McDonalds commercial - Gone But Not Forgotten Commercials - • McDonalds Commercial 1982
Midnight at McDonalds - Jason Harder - • 1981 McDonald's commer...
McDonald’s Hamburger Symphony - Sean Mc - • McDonald's Hamburger S...
McDonalds 1979 Commercial - kmh032008 - • McDonald's Commercial ...
Wacky World Racers - Retro Delights - • McDonald's - Wacky Wor...
McDonaldland 1975 - Video Bill - • McDonald's - McDonaldl...
The CheeseBurger McTrail - Filming At McDonaldland - FilmingInMcD... - Zábava
Hey All! I hope you enjoy this somewhat different episode of Yesterworld exploring the history of McDonaldland and the McDonald’s/Disney Happy Meal. Over the years many of you have probably encountered pieces of the story here and there online, much like myself. However upon learning there was so much more to the history & downfall of such a fascinating and iconic ad campaign, that I thought it’d be a fascinating deep dive to try something a little different. Hope you enjoy!!
- (Video Clip Sources Continued from Description) -
1980s McDonalds Commercials - KAPP-99 [EmotionalBlueStuff] - czcams.com/video/mBoMwLnlswo/video.html - czcams.com/video/2l3IQTQssEk/video.html
Ronald Meets The Professor / Story of Cosmic - PhakeNam - czcams.com/video/GnhS3NmH3JU/video.html - czcams.com/video/QUpJDLeJmZU/video.html
Hamburgler’s Stripes - alligatorjuice - czcams.com/video/AU1iq9rqYJ0/video.html
Oliver & Company McDonalds Commercial - Abe Braham - czcams.com/video/xulxJFnnuvk/video.html
Star Trek McDonalds - TrekCore - czcams.com/video/rVfpncHUgyI/video.html
McDonalds E.T. - SpacedCobraTV - czcams.com/video/YfodGQ0fWqo/video.html
Disney Favorites McDonalds - VHS Party - czcams.com/video/Wi0MxSl-R1g/video.html
McDonalds Mickey’s Birthdayland - Beta MAX - czcams.com/video/U_dyGziDSQg/video.html
McDonalds Splash Mountain - Rewind Me - czcams.com/video/84GiSuyvfNo/video.html
Dick Tracy McDonalds - commercials818 - czcams.com/video/bRAsCNz1-cs/video.html
Dick Tracy McDonalds #2 - WDWManimal - czcams.com/video/LS5J8gp-_jg/video.html
Roger Ebert Dick Tracy - Aldolpho - czcams.com/video/yle1BVxEwy0/video.html
McDonalds Disney’s Aladdin - bluemonday16 - czcams.com/video/Iv31jM_XB8U/video.html
Burger King Disney Aladdin - FM1156 - czcams.com/video/AJ1NKWW7RIE/video.html - czcams.com/video/RHWN_yjk3tk/video.html
Burger King The Lion King Commercial - Commercial Collections - czcams.com/video/2yW5uHFZriU/video.html - 90s Nostalgia - czcams.com/video/Xj5K4T_Y1bw/video.html
Lion King McDonalds UK - Ian Nelson - czcams.com/video/lg_tsJshSM4/video.html
The Lion King Commercials - smurvin - czcams.com/video/UFuo7CBUiFU/video.html
McDonalds The Little Mermaid Commercial - quiteacharacter105 - czcams.com/video/9fs7lSdtXuk/video.html
McDonalds 101 Dalmations - Hakki Bulut - czcams.com/video/K5fxzt93o7A/video.html - ewjxn - czcams.com/video/96lK5BXivW0/video.html
Hunchback of Notre Dame McDonalds - ewjxn - czcams.com/video/3N0AduVicg8/video.html
McDonalds Hercules - Play Pause Video - czcams.com/video/svdxFLbyTzE/video.html
McDonald’s Mulan - Tommy Deonauth’s Archives - czcams.com/video/_ujrU4aTbG0/video.html
McDonalds Disney Masterpiece Collection - ewjxn - czcams.com/video/b2fOjPdnCuk/video.html
McDonalds Hercules Happy Meal - Movie & Video Game TV Spots - czcams.com/video/yYhfrV9r4YQ/video.html
McDonald’s Millennium Celebration - airplaneengine - czcams.com/video/pRTom5ZtTSQ/video.html
McDonald’s Animal Kingdom - sscb1 - czcams.com/video/TpeVsazcSrM/video.html - DisneyParkVideos - czcams.com/video/-bsugfQpWyw/video.html
McDonald’s Commercials 1993 to 2002 - Commercial Collections - czcams.com/video/07S4-ueMw0A/video.html
Wacky Adventures of Ronald McDonald - deathrowskater72 - czcams.com/video/wRj_BXFXeIc/video.html
McDonalds Skating Commercial - Rewind Me - czcams.com/video/y_aG6nRFVoc/video.html
McDonald’s Chicken Head News - J. Patrick Stublen - czcams.com/video/koM_Ha2u2nY/video.html
McDonald’s I AM HUNGRY - mercatfat - czcams.com/video/dPNT2GqMICc/video.html
McDonalds Incredibles - Tommy Deonauth’s Archives - czcams.com/video/72nP8wnl1Oc/video.html
McDonalds Smile - LONNEYTHOMASFAN2006 - czcams.com/video/9LKpBBPE7Ls/video.html
Ronald Gram - TheToyVideos - czcams.com/video/c42Wd-za-ZI/video.html
McDonald’s Frozen Disney Happy Meal & Onward - Disney Channel, Funko, and Ryan’s World Fan 2021 - czcams.com/video/LGbAjrwijEI/video.html - czcams.com/video/IsyUp8VF1Z0/video.html
Thanks for the video. I really enjoyed learning about this history keep up the great videos.
I didn't have a milkshake, but I raised a Pepsi.
Did you see the HBO doc McMillions? About the monopoly game scandal? Good stuff.
Do you have a link for the Sid and Marty Krofft lawsuit? Or a case id number?
As a former legal assistant, I think the brief might be an interesting read.
Ronald McDonald still appears every year in the Macy’s thanksgiving day parade riding in the big shoe and they have a Ronald mcDonald ballon so Ronald McDonald is not totally gone. I guess that you never watch the Macy’s parade
"...leaving the world a lawless wasteland".
Like Mad... Macs?
I'll show myself out.
Slow claps
dont that was perfect
_"...leaving the world a lawless wasteland..."_
I would have been LOL'n 10 years ago... Today?..... Not so much.
That statement is now approaching too close to reality anymore, they've finally taken the mask off with this past Nov 3rd's Tragic hi-jacking, take-over coupe these evil fuchs call, _"Most open, fair election ever!"_
*IT SHOULD BE DECLARED A NATIONAL DISASTER!* ... This is 10X larger than the 9/11 scam 20 years ago imo, These delusional cretin's openly robbed not only physical votes... but now they've robbed us of our ability to put any faith or a solid belief that this so-called, _"Fair & Unbiased"_ system we use/ been using, to elect our so-called _"Leaders", Representatives, Officials, Gov's, Mayors, Councils, etc...all the way down to dog-catcher,_ *IS/WAS* nothing more than a rigged, smoke-N-mirrors shit-carny slot machine GAME that only makes the owners richer!! ....What makes me really, physically sick is that as of YET, this 1st quarter of 2021.... 4 MONTHS NOW..... NOBODY'S YET TO DO A GODDAMN THING ABOUT IT!!!
If We, The People allow this current assKlown parade of fools & mentally-challenged misfits to continue this freakshow, destroying our infrastructure, economy, way of life + showcasing their _"'Murica"_ , ( *NOT OUR America!* ), to the rest of the world as idiotic transtesticles, airheads & buffoons .... It's gone....hellzbellz...it's almost gone now
If We, The People do nothing about the biggest felony and traitorous crime that's EVER been pulled on America & it's fine people.... then we are as criminal as these twisted fuchs are ....and we deserve whatever's getting ready to come down the pike @ us then.... QUIT WAITING FOR A GOD TO COME SAVE YOU!!!
"WE ARE THE ONES WE HAVE EEN WATNG FOR!
Stay Safe,
~Whirled Peas
12160.info
That joke really made me 'grimace'.
🙄😄👍
We just gonna ignore how horrifying 70s Hamburglar was?
Not ignoring, just choosing to never speak of it again...
No one else has replied and I find that outrageous
O-o I never heard of it but I will search it up in the morning just in case it is horrifying and I won’t be able to sleep rn 😂
I just wonder if the characters do return will Grimace be voiced by Frank Welker or Kevin Richardson?
YECHHH! Gimme the fat faced, button nosed cutesy 80's Hamburglar instead.
Finally!! A thorough & well researched, explanation for the disappearance of all the McDonaldland characters! Including, eventually, even Ronald, himself. Had no idea that they had been sued by Sid & Marty Kroft! I'm glad that I was one of the last generations to get to experience the McDonaldland characters, & the playgrounds.
It used to be fun. As a kid I remember the signs saying hundreds of thousands served . Then years later saying millions served now billions and billions served was the last time I saw them count.
I vividly remember that hot plastic smell inside officer Big Mac's head in the summertime, and getting burned on the all the metal.
@@Jim26D Mr peeva she was new girl friend Derek Llewellyn feel like galya peeva she was own McDonald's before on her own life story made 50s
@@Jim26D what do u want them to do count every person
@@coconut8800 no, it was just my way of looking how fast time has passed. Back then it was fun to go as a kid.
You completely missed the parts where McDonald's made a cartoon show and would give out VHS tapes with every happy meal. Grimace Island was lit
Right? That’s the reason why I know who these characters are.
So THATS how we got those. I remember having them. Don't remember asking for them. And I doubt my parents would have bought them.
@@Owlet101
im only here makeing this comment because the Grimace Spanwed a Milshake who ended up killing everyone.
I had one of those and in the mid 2000s my younger sister found it and was OBSESSED so my mom found and bought the rest on eBay and now we have the full set 😄
Mcdonald's used to feel "different". The yellow color used to be so appetizing for me, now it's all modernized and looking more like an office space
Agree 100%. It’s blatantly soulless at this point.
@@ChicoDiamante Well, at least they're being honest about their soulless business now. I honestly prefer it this way. Hopefully less people will be tricked into thinking their anything more than a business.
@@HOTD108_ ^This
agree. its awful
Yeah it just feels insanely corporate and bland
It’s just amazing to me that even though I grew up in the early 2000s, where none of these characters were around (excluding Ronald) I still knew who they were. That’s how much lasting power they had.
Same here. As a late 1980's baby, I grew up with McDonald's Happy Meals in the 1990's to very early 2000's, but somehow the original characters were always very well known to me. I imagine it was mostly due to the lingering aspects of the PlayGround
@@YesterworldEntertainment and the occasional nostalgic Easter egg or small reappearance
I remember the characters still being around on playplaces and seating. wbu?
@@YesterworldEntertainment Damn you’re old, I was expecting you to be younger.
@@rgkong8783 being in your 30's isn't old lol
In the late 80's, there used to be a creepy pretend "prison" in the basement of one the larger McDonald's (Toronto).
It was a strange, dark carpeted maze with little decorated jail cells, small slides and a ball pit. It was only about 4ft high in there and had bars on the windows. We would stick our heads between the bars to get some air because it was so hot and stuffy in there. Kids would regularly craw into eachother and bash their heads because it was so dark in there. I still remember the carpet burn on my knees. And the smell... oh the smell.
I think I've been watching too much Fascinating Horror channel. All I can picture now is the catastrophic horror had a fire broken out in your description of the weird unsafe McDonald's underground playground. 😱
“When the fire broke out the children all rushed toward the single exit. The first few made it through but between the darkness and low ceiling the children quickly became tangled. Parents pulled at their arms and legs but the children were stuck due to the weight of those pushing from behind. Seventeen children were killed in the crush.
I love Fascinating Horror, could you tell?
@@ElectronicsGuy666 me too, that was spot on lol
I wish you had a photo of this. Just to give us a visual of what it looked like
Originally, Grimace was the "Evil Grimace", with two pairs of arms with which to steal milkshakes. After that first campaign, the character was revised to be one of the "good guys", and his number of arms was reduced by two.
Confirming that evil is stored in the 3rd and 4th arms
Ronald McDonald: "We all McFloat down here."
Ok, that made me laugh
@@YesterworldEntertainment I do my best.
"You'll McFloat too!"
They would if the icecream machines were working lol
Except the fry kids, they must be getting pretty soggy by now
I have to mention this Story.
in 2003 when my Parents got me McDonald’s Toys of Finding Nemo they thought the Dory Toy was broken but they didn’t realize was that she was Speaking Whale they went back to the restaurant and told the employees that it was broken they gave them a new another and it did the same thing and then they told this to my Uncle and he lost it
Maybe your parents were just mad Dory was trying to sell you root beer floats
@@WasatchWind Is that supposed to be just a joke?
@@LittleBlueReviews400 did someone peepee in your happy meal?
@@ZeroFische For Real? 🤨
11:15 is that a deleted scene from the 1970 Pufnstuf movie?
I always wondered what happened to all the characters, McDonald’s used to be so fun and happy, now it’s just modernized
Yeah McCafe is horrid
Yeah, fun and happy and plastic. It's fantastic. It was SO good !
In the 2000s when the media was making a bigger deal of obesity rates in America, exacerbated maybe the most by Supersize Me (as crappy as it is) McDonald's was under pretty heavy fire for so much of its advertising being child-focused. So within the past decade or two they've shifted strategies to trying to be "cool" and "adult" to try and change their public image, with McCafe and stuff like that.
Just watch the Robot Chicken Les Misérables-McDonald's parody to get a good summary
they're not really allowed to bring back the characters either, it goes against child adverstiment laws or something like that
It’s just sad knowing that colorful place we always went to is now black grey yellow and a little bit of blue in the playgrounds I WANT THE COLOR BACK 🥲🥲
Weaseling them out of the McDonald's Restaurant is an appropriate description of how Ray Kroc treated the McDonald's brothers.
There are multiple sides to the story...but the core truth in all of them is that he really did weasel them out of the business, no matter how much some people try to justify it. I mean even AFTER he acquired McDonald's, he purposefully drove their original location out of business that posed absolutely no threat.
@@YesterworldEntertainment that was messed up, the McDonald brothers couldn't even use their own name, Ray Kroc what an ass!
Ray Kroc Quote: “If my competitor were drowning I'd stick a hose in his mouth and turn on the water.” hate him all you want he was still brilliant.
@@illrhymes25 some people think that sneaky is smart and kind is stupid.
@@illrhymes25 that's not brilliance, that's maliciousness
Low-key surprised mcdonald's hasnt already tried capitalizing on the nostalgia, especially w/ how popular 80s and 90s nostalgia are rn. I mean it's not like they NEED more money...buuuut still, they really do be missin out on all that sweet sweet nostalgia money
They kinda did about 4 or 5 years ago when they tried to give the Hamburglar a "sexy" makeover to push their new burgers.
Burger King has been doing that with Stranger Things tie-ins and bringing back the original logo so now would actually be a good time fort McDonald's to follow suit and cash in on 70s-80s nostalgia.
I totally agree, but since the characters and branding inside the buildings existed well into the 2000s it's probably too early for the nostalgia-baiting. I'd give it another 5-10 years, they'll return for a short and half-assed campaign only to disappear from existence for another decade or so.
They had the short lived, and completely botched "Retro Happy Meal" promotion a couple years ago. Only managed to get a McNugget Buddy and a Dalmatian. They also have a line of Funko Pops of their mascots and McNugget Buddies for some reason. Maybe there's a T-shirt or something.
They technically did for their anniversary the Happy meal and brought back all those nostalgic popular toys
Really interesting history. I was a 2000s kid so I don't remember seeing a ton of marketing on these characters but I remember seeing them in the restaurant and the play area so I kind of knew them by osmosis. Kind of crazy to hear just how ubiquitous they were for so many people.
Nice put together story. As a child of the 80's when I feel the McDonaldland playground was at its top, there was something I didn't hear you mention that I am surprised not to hear(unless I missed it). The kids birthday parties! All the kids present got a Happy meal and there was a cake that IF I remember correctly had the option of Ronald Birdie or Grimace on it and the little sugar pearls sprinkled on top. I remember going to multiple bday parties there, then out to the playland!
Grimace returned last Macy’s parade, so I have hope that it’s a sign that the other McDonald’s characters will return to commercials!
There was also that ad with a live-action "down to earth" Hamburglar (basically a Bayformers-action) back in 2015.
Grimace was evil in the first ads
Grimace along with the others were apart of the Macy’s Parade back in the good old days so Macy’s brought him back cause of COVID-19.
It was safer than having a group of random people but of McDonalds let’s Macy’s and others license them why not.
@@tigerlord9302 I heard somewhere that Mac was used by people who are racist to make propaganda Memes
@@eerieeric834 Not him but a character they based off him. Think that’s why he was retired if I’m not mistaken.
Funny story about the 101 dalmatians tie in, my grandfather won the entire set for my mother in 1994, we still have the box and all 101 Dalmatians in near pristine condition
No need to flex/lh
How much are you willing to sell it for?
(I'm kinda joking)
@@starspeculation Le 0 because they aint for sale lol
I would want them tbh I just love vintage and antique items
Never sell it, keep it forever
Those Disney toys from the late 90s and early 00s are super nostalgic to me, I was in love with the Lion King 2 toys especially.
Also Super Size Me was a big sham as well, scientists have never been able to replicate the guy’s results and I think it was also concluded he was predisposed to the conditions he developed due to eating way too much in that one month.
Wait, there was a Lion King 2?
@@robozaogameryt yeah. It's a straight to video sequel based on Romeo and Juliette.
@@robozaogameryt and a lion king 3 called lion king 1/2
@@gameraspindlethorn6229 Oh, I think I heard about 1/2 before... Is it that prequel?
@@robozaogameryt more like timon and pumba telling their version of the story/ what they were doing during it. so more like a different side of the story
I will never forget the fact that there was once a 60s TV cartoon called Linus the Lionhearted, about a lion who was the literal mascot for a Post cereal and whose complete cast was comprised of other Post cereal mascots
Here in the Netherlands we didn't have the McDonaldland tv show, but the characters would pop up in happy meals every so often. So now imagine getting these characters with your food with no clue who they were, only to grow up into an adult and now hear about McDonaldland for the first time.
Dude I live in America and we never watched those shows. Sure I knew Ronald and the Hamburglar but the rest... eh theres just this giant purple thing featured everywhere Mcdonalds is wierd like that.
I think a friend told me the purple thing was suppose to represent chicken nuggets and for some reason believed them.
Ja, en af en toe kreeg je van die kleurplaten mee waarbij ik altijd dacht “wie is dit”? 😧💀
@@daniellegroves4830 yeah i had a hamburglar toy and one of the big purple character too, my female cousin had a female hamburglar and a yellow bird
growing up in the exact era I did (was born 1998) meant that is basically what I experienced. it was right when they stopped using the characters all the time and started focusing on the brand tie-ins lol
by the time I had become, like.. lucid as a human being(?) the characters were pretty much only on those paper tray liners with puzzles on em and they were also heavily featured in the play place and furniture designs. never even know their names until I was stricken with the memory of the characters' faces a few years ago by googling old mcdonalds interior design and decided to look into the characters! but gosh are they my favorite things on the planet now as an adult xD
The purple thing was the Evil Grimace-“grimace”, in English meaning a facial expression indicating distress or displeasure. They later dropped the evil part, and just called him Grimace. He was originally a bad mood who could be made happy only with food from McDonald’s. BTW, there was never a McDonaldland TV show. It existed in commercials shown during shows aimed at kids. There was always an alternate main campaign of ads aimed at adults. A school roommate tried to nickname me “Grimace”, not knowing that I grimaced only when I was around him.
“That’s nasty”
“That’s pretty gross”
“I don’t think it’s that bad”
I mean, if that's the first time it happened, that's not too bad honestly. You'd be surprised by what the FDA allows in food only because it's impossible to make food spotless.
what is that last woman eating that "fried chicken head" is perfectly normal eats?
at least its real chicken lol
Not much difference between eating a CHICKEN nugget made from the head and eating a CHICKEN nugget made from from the breast, so why the surprise? It's all from the same animal 🤦
These quotes sound sexual and perverted now that op posted them with no context, so it sounds obscene!!
coming back to watch this during the peak of the grimace shake trend
In 2023 grimace, birdy and hamburglar came back
McDonalds really missed the opportunity to call the professor the “Pro’fry’ssor”
Now all I can think of is Futurama
Mayor Mccheese also sounds a little bit like Wade Duck from US Acres
but don't the names have to do with what the character is as well?
(the ham-burglar, Mayor McCheese, Officer BigMac, etc. I don't see any fries on the professor. (unless you count his hair. lol))
@@frozenfiredarknight3764 his hair kinda looked like fries in the first one.
@@jamesoniris2647 kinda. but other then that, nothing else says "Fries" on the professor.
Me (as a 70's kid) what happened to the McDonald's characters?
Me (now at 52): Got it
Same here at 42. I remember the McDonald's playground quite well from the 1980s. Though I'm surprised they did not cover that the final nail in the coffin for Ronald McDonald was the rash of terrifying clown sightings in 2016.
@@spindalis79 despite him still having prescence at the Ronald McDonald house organisation.
My mom said they may have got rid of Hamburglar because he was a bad influence on kids. Then my mom said that is was not depicted in a glorified context because he got caught by some burger that was a cop. Why don't they bring that back? I answered, they got sued for that.
here after they brought grimace back
It seems the 70s was a great era to be a kid in the early days of McDonaldland and Sesame Street. I was a decade late, growing up in the 80s, but I enjoyed these as well.
I lived it (now a 60 year old)
Yep, young child in the 1970s and teen in the 1980's!
Gen X must've certainly had a blessed childhood
@@PeruvianPotato Well, I think we were very lucky. Loved it at the time, but looking back compared to today I feel even more so.
"The evil Grimace can bounce and bend all day, and is completely safe for children" has destroyed my goddamned mind.
10:18
*Hamburglar T-poses to show his dominance over McDonaldland*
Horrifying
Robble-robble.
czcams.com/video/hQRx8sZOWJY/video.html
We need to run
And no tstop
I love how Matpat from the Food Theorist channel literally stole your hard work from your video, with no credit
That’s sad 😞
Damn..
So Matpat being Matpat
Really?
Matpat is bad
This is incredible. This is like a personal timeline. I was too young to remember the McDonaldland commercials, but I vividly remember the Happy Meal rollout and many of those toy cross-promotions. Then we get to the late 90s and I don't remember any of that stuff. Wow.
You left out info about birthday parties at McDonald’s in the early 1980s! The cake was DELICIOUS and decorated with Ronald McDonald and the fry guys. We played games like stacking styrofoam Big Mac boxes, took tours of the freezer and kitchen, received a t-shirt and met Ronald McDonald. Would love to see a video about that!
I had a McDonald's birthday! I don't remember much but I do remember playing hot potato. lol
Yes! I had one at a McDonaldland playground in '79. Every kid at my party got a huge decorated sugar cookie that looked like one of the characters. They were almost as good as that cake.
The 'Fry Guys' - phooey. I liked it better when they were known as The Goblins
I remember McDonald's parties in Philly, even worked a few in 1984. The happy meal hadn't been around long and was selling well. The restaurant itself was early 70s vintage but no play area. Those came later, well after I was done growing up (and felt a bit cheated). Fast food in the 70s were just that, eateries.
Holy crap, I didn't know it used to be so cool. I'm a late 2000's kid and in my time having a McDonald's birthday party just meant renting the private glass room and there was no such things as cake, employees wishing you happy birthday, tours of the kitchen, getting t-shirts, meeting Ronald, e.t.c. Just renting the private room.
I remember trying to get all the “Inspector Gadget” Happy Meal toys as a kid. They were pieces of Inspector Gadget himself and at one time, I cried a lot because when we went to get McDonalds for lunch, I wanted the Happy Meal toy, Inspector Gadget’s helicopter hat, but they didn’t have it. Thankfully, I did eventually get all the pieces of Inspector Gadget.
My mom went to at least a dozen McDonald's trying to get all the pieces for me, and even then I don't think I got them all until years later when I got one of the limbs secondhand (no pun intended).
Now if only I could just get all the pieces to the Power Rangers Lightspeed Rescue Megazord...
i still have my inspector
When I was a kid Burger King actually did an Inspector Gadget line (for the original cartoon, not the live-action movie) featuring action figures. There were multiple IGs, including a classic grey trenchcoat one with a snap-in helicopter hat, a black and white one in a diving suit, a yellow one that I forget the gimmick of was, another with extendable limbs, etc.
That inspector gadget water gun was awesome it had white a range and good pressure
I have the full inspector gadget too! It's on a shelf in my office.
Very interesting video! I always thought the goblins were called Fry Kids. Maybe they changed the name.
Also some of the most iconic Happy Meal toys were the ones that weren't tied to any tie-in promotion. The ones that were shaped like McDonalds food items but turned into robots or dinosaurs were the best!
We actually had a McDonalds a town over from me that was still in its old appearance from when it was first franchised. It even still had the Speedy mascot on the sign. Was really cool to see how vintage it was. Sadly, though, it was remodeled a few years ago in favor of a more modern look.
It's sad they just ended the character of Shakes McJunkie without an official story line. He made Hamburglar look like a saint.
IKR. Did he shake it off? Did he play it off legit?
@@migangelmart when I wear it, I'm the shit
@@JK-gm6kk Really not that legit
I think you're thinking of the Knight character from the Burger King court, the milkshake character for McDonald's was Grimace
Remember the talking McNuggets I loved those commercials
I'd rather see Ronald McDonald and the McDonaldland characters make a comeback as the face of the Happy Meal, instead of, you know, the Minion-influenced monstrosity they have today (at least here in Europe)
Oh, that thing is LONG gone over here. The Happy Meal commercials we get today, unless they're a movie tie in that uses movie characters, feature slice of life stories with kids getting Happy Meals from their parents. The Minion wannabes lasted a tiny bit longer in stores, but they were just that much of a flop in the US. In fact, the only Happy Meal toy they were actually used in was some Holiday Train from a few years ago, where they were the engine and caboose. Oddly enough, two cars in the train had the actual Minions on it.
That depends one when people will stop being eunuchs about clowns... 😑
Clowns are endlessly obnoxious and I'll have none of this "creepy clown" nonsense until we realize that fact. Binky the Clown is the most accurate portrayal.
That's for sure, I mean the whole evil clown thing is getting old.
My stance on clowns is, kids are afraid of them and adults think they're stupid, so what the hell good are they?
I remember playing in the play place in the early 2000's and they had the little plastic bibs of the McDonald's characters along with seats shaped like them. Man I miss those days.
I remember those disposable bibs too. They where like the ones you would commonly find at a seafood boil restaurant today, but children's sized.
Omg I was born in 1991 and there was a McDonald’s that had a leftover Ronald McDonald statue that was near the outdoors tubes and play area! I had no idea it used to be a McDonald Land! Until now in 2021 😨🤭 I loved that clown statue and used to climb and hang on it! Memories unlocked 💕
I’m also a 1991 kid and remember a statue at my local!
They need to bring him back the whole entire McDonald'land crew Ronald and the rest of them. They were iconic and classic characters and believe it or not a lot of us miss them and the mcdonaldland cookies. Just saying.
Oh, man, those little cookies were AWESOME.
you're in your 30s, willow. please.
@@ErestuPedro LOL. So you know how old I am?? Wow. Not in my 30's good try though.
OMG you just took me back I totally forgot about the McDonald’s cookies they’re were so delicious they were a step above butter cookies you’d by at the grocery store with a hint of lemony tinge to the taste. 🤗
@@LiLTailormade They were good...High five to ya !
I remember when the local mall had parts of a playground inside the restuarant. There wasn’t much to play on in that particular McD’s because of space, but they DID have the apple pie tree with small tables for kids and seats shaped like burgers. My younger brother and I LOVED that tree!
Our Mall in Baltimore had a similar set up.
6:29 "Like a Willy Wonka factory of high-cholesterol" So, just like a regular Willy Wonka factory then?
When I was a kid, in my car seat and I saw a McDonald's from the window, apparently I would say "Donald's" over and over again, in hopes that we would stop. A tape somewhere exists of my 3rd birthday at a McDonald's play place in 1990, complete with the "jail" and all. Was pretty iconic, I'd say.
You know mad hatter is iconic when you can pinpoint that voice immediately
Yes indeed
@@YesterworldEntertainment And admitting that a later role of his is a flat-out ripoff of that.
I recognized the voice immediately
Ed Wynn created one hell of a voiceover style.
Don’t cha know...
Correction! I was born in 85 and spent many birthdays at McDonald's with my fam. And those Grimace high chairs were TOTALLY real!! Ronald and that flying bird girl too!! They rolled! That was near Atlanta GA.
The grimace chair looked perfect. The Ronald one was creepy and wrong.
82 we would have to bathe and put on our best clothes to go to A&W it was the fanciest thing our parents would think to include us kids in. And have you ever had a 1988 A&W teen burger. It was worth it.
The Grimace high chair was real, my local McDonalds had it at least into 1999 when I had my 5th birthday there.
I was born in 1984, and the Grimace, Ronald and Birdie high chairs were all real and in use at the McDonald's in Fresno California in the late 1980s and early '90s.
I thought I remembered those chairs too!
"Can't sleep, clown will eat me."- Bart Simpson
It's not widely known, but the character of Ronald McDonald was actually created by an Atlanta-area franchisee named Eaven. The company objected at first, fearing a region-specific mascot other than the one they already had would create confusion, but they soon saw how popular the new character was. As Eaven had created the character while contracted to McDonald's, the company was able to take control of the IP, though they had to redesign the character since Eaven had independently trademarked the costume and makeup design (the process of designing and trademarking a clown makeup/costume design is surprisingly complicated). Ronald McDonald was rolled out nationally, but Eaven did not see fair compensation for his contribution, kind of par for the course for Ray Kroc.
I remember having a Star Trek happy meal, although my mother made a big scene of demanding I not get a cookie in it because of the sugar. (I was taken to Dairy Queen afterward for ice cream. I didn't say she was sane.)
Lol
My wife.
I still remember as a kid when the toy story 2 McDonald Toys came out. My dad and I drove to 17! McDonald's to get the whole series. So much fun
That’s some dedication to go to 355,687,428,096,000 different restaurants
I did the same with my nieces when the My Little Pony toys released.
Back in 2014 when the Mairokart 8 toys came out. Me and my dad went out to At least 10 McDonalds to get the whole series lol.
Your dad sounds awesome
The complete story of McDonald's - czcams.com/video/2lKLxviOw9g/video.html
Did anyone else have a McDonald's playfood set in the 2000's I remember exactly what everything looked like too, the sauce containers opened and the drinks and the sundae were like this cheap hollow plastic, same with the apple pie. I used to bite down on that apple pie, I don't know why but I think it was just because I was like 5 and liked the texture. I also had the Barbie McDonald's set if anyone remembers that as well
If you want to know the exact one I'm talking about I can put a link to an image
We don't even get to see Grimace's culturally appropriated Irish uncle, who used to visit in march and bring the Shamrock shake, anymore.
Uncle O'Grimacey
Seeing those old Happy Meal boxes made me suddenly remember that my mother still has like a 3 foot tall STACK of those old iconic boxes from the '80s at the top of a closet.
She had saved them in the late '80s when I was too young to really do the puzzles and stuff on them to use when I was just a little older, like the old "rainy day" back up. She ended up forgetting about them until I was a teenager in the late '90s, and by then we didn't get rid of them because we figured they'd end up being worth something soon since that's when old Happy Meal toys were starting to really boom as a collector's market.
I need to look into that...🤔
Good luck! Hope you guys can get a pretty penny for them, that's pretty iconic
wow that is really cool i am into MacDonald's stuff so i find it cool
Did you get a chance to look into it yet? If you do, let me know what happens. I'm genuinely curious for some reason, lol.
@@456puff yea same
I have a happy meal that turns into a dragon that looks like the Blargg from Super Mario World on the SNES
9:20 chairs with the shape of the mascots did exist in the 90s and early 2000s. Maybe not exactly that design, but they existed and I sat on them way too many times during my childhood.
I used to work at McDonald's and I was able to make the food and run the register, and I would have 96 burgers and big Macs , quarter pounders, etc..
Back then, you literally could get your meal in 15 seconds.
Now, 5 minutes is the average wait for a burger
I really hate what they did to McDonald's
"My mom never told me to talk to strangers"
"Very wise of ya mom, very wise indeed. I am Pennywi..uh... um, Ronald McDonald the clown."
czcams.com/video/hQRx8sZOWJY/video.html
Reminds me of that comic where the Joker and Pennywise were talking about how many people they killed, and then Ronald rolls up and says he's killed millions/billions, which shocked the the other two.
Krusty: Ho Ho Ho!
Remember kids, TV violence is fine, as long as you don’t show a nipple!
I never knew that the Fry Guys were ever called "goblins"
I was actually scrolling through the comments to see if anyone else mentioned that. I always thought they were called the The Fry Guys or The Fry Kids. Musta been an 80’s or 90’s rebrand.
Fry Kids is all I ever heard
They changed it because parents thought the name goblins sounded too scary!
Still are, just not officially..
Like when I say under my breath.. look at that damn goblin dippin my fries up.
I did.
6:59 "The Burger alarm!" cried Tim
Uh, no. "The Burger alarm," Tim casually observed.
I always hated how so many people want to point their finger at an industry instead of taking responsibility for their own actions. A common factor among people who went on a successful diet is their saying they had to come to the place where they stopped making excuses and start making serious changes.
I miss the shortbread cookies that used to be in the Happy Meal!
Just yearning for those as I ate my happy meal alone!
I heard they still include those actually.
@@tigerlord9302 I haven’t seen them in 30 years!
Me too and the chocolate chip cookies they used to have
@@Crystalpoodleblack they still have chocolate chip cookies here in So California. Just had one last week!
Pause why did that woman say “I don’t think it’s that bad” about the chicken head 😂😂😂
LOVE the comedic timing too. Just a punch to the gut
Probably because she realized it was fake
I mean, i am surprised there was enough actual chicken in that factory for it to happen.
I mean, you know that meat used to be live animals, a head shouldn't be that shocking, lol.
That chicken head thing I think was done on purpose I really feel sorry for the customer
i decided to look up some videos on Ronald McDonald and the gang because of the new Grimace Birthday meal going on now. And I'm really disappointed that my generation never really got the chance to see the high point of McDonalds, I can only hope that some day, we'll have at least something slightly close to resembling what it used to be
I had a NES game featuring a lot of these characters called McKids. Considering it was both a kids game and a giant advertisement, it was surprisingly good. It could've easily passed for a Mario title if the sprites were switched out.
I actually had the opportunity two or so years ago to visit the oldest continuously operating McDonald's in Anaheim, CA. They gave us a burger with nothing but onions on it and it tasted incredible. I was floored by how good such a simple recipe tasted. If you have the opportunity, please take it. It was the best McDonald's I've ever had.
Now, to the less fun part... I have dietary restrictions now. I was a McDonald's kid, without a doubt. There was a McDonald's drive thru on the way home from my ballet practice and I would get their food pretty often.
I can't help but miss their food, even if it would be horrible for my health in the long run (dietary restrictions are a result of Crohn's Disease, not McD's food, to clarify). The spooky Halloween buckets with stickers really captured the magic of the season and gave me something fun to go trick-or-treating with.
The nostalgia I am getting from this video, despite not even being a 70s or 80s kid, is intense.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for making this video.
Overcome weakness. Make the disease your bitch. Don't let it tell you how to live your life. Show it your in command now, and don't take orders from anything! Now go out there and live it to the fullest, my guy!
@@fatherted776 ...I appreciate the sentiment, but if I eat something that's bad enough for me I will be hospitalized.
Are you sure Anaheim? The 2nd oldest one and oldest operational is in Downey, CA. It was like 10 mins from where I lived for years.
"I would get their food pretty often"
"it's not the food that caused crohns"
ARE YOU SERIOUS?! LOL good luck
I hope you get better. I have kidney issues. If I have to go on dialysis I'd also be on a restricted diet. Chrons diseases sounds awful. What can you eat?
WTF? I never noticed that Boo-Berry had nipple chains?!?! 15:35
😂😂😂😂
Food Theorist just released an exact replica of this video on his channel!
The MacDonald chatacters are BAAACK now,with their new Cactus Club campaign‼️💥
“That was nasty”
“That’s was pretty gross”
“I don’t think it’s that bad”
That cracked me up
same.
Same again.
Lol this comment made me laugh as I relived that clip in my mind-thanks 😆
I’m glad I wasn’t the only one who thought so.
had to immediately come to the comments after hearing that too 🤣
I find it ironic that the first Mcdonalds to exist were financed by a milkshake mixer salesman when in fact Mcdonald's milkshake and ice cream makers NEVER work 😂
The curse of McDonald's?
There's actually a real reason they don't seriously.. Bet it's easily googled 👍😶🌫️👍
@@tashuntka There's a whole video by Jonny Harris on the topic of McDonald's shake/ice cream machines never working.
These videos show such amazing parts of history. SO AWESOME! Thank you for making these great documentaries!
Early 2000s McDonald’s was so amazing. Something about it just hypnotized me as a kid. It legit made their food taste more delicious.
As a kid in the 80's I used to love McDonald's commercials with Ronald McDonald & the others. They were very entertaining and made me want a happy meal.
"Get yourself ready for a *trip* to McDonald Land!" With that island with crazy things like trees with faces, hamburger flowers, etc, along with music from the 1960's, we know what kind of "trip" they mean! 🤪🤯
o-oh…
Trippy...
😅
@@christopheralthouse6378 indeed
@@DingusWasHere you mean oh no
VV E E D
Thank you for the trip down memory lane... I grew up in the 80's and experienced all this.. it was awesome!!!
Oh wow.. core memory unlocked. I remember seeing Willard Scott as the weather guy on Good Morning America or some show like that when I was a kid. He always gave the people turning 100 a shout out... I think it was sponsored by Smuckers.
I also remember my parents hung one of those E.T. posters on my wall. It terrified me. E.T. is creepy af.
The waste baskets are hungry too!
Makes me question toilets
As a little kid (1999 to 2002 sometime) I got a happy meal toy of a finger puppet tiger. I LOVED THAT THING and my poor parents had to deal with me screaming for a 3 inch tiger toy every time I lost it (which was often). long story short I still have it even though it was shoved down a vent and thrown out of a hotel window. Most kids have a special teddy or blanket but I had a fcking finger puppet from a happy meal to sleep at night lmao
That is so absolutely cute! Reminds me of my ol' stuffed pug, Pugsly-who I still have to this day!
I remember the great *Disney Promo Toy Burger Wars* of the 90’s…going to get fast food was a “twice a month” treat growing up and I remember that all of us kids were super bummed out whenever *Burger King* was running the Disney promo (or had the “good toys”)…
Not because we didn’t like BK or anything, but because the nearest location to our tiny farming town was over an hour drive away!
So when that happened, we had to hope that our (or one of the other kid’s family’s) had a reason to go into “the city” while the promo was running and that they were willing to bring all of us back a kids meal (I later found out that all of the parents/aunts/uncles/grandparents had a standing promise to bring kids meals back for all the kids, in those particular circumstances…which i think is just adorable…) 😁❤️.
So obviously all the kids residing within our lil country farm town were always rooting for McD’s to win the “toy wars”.
Those silly memories and marketing were so effective and deeply rooted in my subconscious, that on the rare occasion I get something from fast food, I will still pick McD over BK.
Which is super crazy. Lol
One of the MOST informational docuvideos I've ever seen... Great job!
"And will most likely never return" awkwardly stairs at the funko pops of the McDonald Land characters that came out in 2020 and 2021
Not to mention that weird live action hambuglar
Never say never as the saying goes
*stares
Funko pops are not a return, they make merch of any old nostalgic property
@@kronemerj What? When did he come back?
I love how McDonaldland feels like an authentic 70s LSD trip
i mean it was the 70s...
I was literally thinking that, and with the other show that was a land of living items... There had to be drugs involved..
Yeah man! All the groovy colors, shapes, and sizes. Makes it look far out.✌
I remember playing in the McDonald’s play land. It was in Santa Clara CA near the corner of Homestead Rd and Lawrence Expressway. The McDonald’s is still there but where the drive-thru lanes are now is where the play land was.
All the play structures were there. It was in the early to mid 80’s. It was fun.
This video got into my reccomended and I had to check it out.
And it was really good. Well edited and well researched.
The McDonald's in Fort Myers, Florida was one of the holdouts that kept those fiberglass mcdonald's land character statues well into the 2000's until some college kids came by one night and kidnapped Mayor McCheese. It was all over the local news. Don't think the cops ever located the Mayor 😂😂😂
A McDonald's in Augusta, Maine that opened in 1988 still had statures of the Fry Kids until May 2019!
I remember many many years ago when I was a kid someone stole a Bob's Big Boy from one of the restaurants in my area , it was a real big deal too I think they after several years of looking even got the FBI involved , yet I don't think it ever turned up . so some 40 years later can probably be found in someone's barn .
I remember that as a kid! we were on vacation in Cape Coral and ended up at that mcdonalds, and dad gave us a whole lesson on mayor mccheese and the burger cop.
F for McCheese
OMG!!!! I had forgotten all about that!
Excellent work, as usual. As a Gen X’er, this brought back a lot of memories (many of them repressed, for obvious reasons.) A few years ago, I brought my son to our local McD’s, which someone had painted a huge picture of Grimace on the glass. I had to explain to him who Grimace was...when they removed the picture a year later. He kept asking about it. Those characters are hard to forget.
Came here from Penguinz video because he would not stop talking when the video was playing. I think this video is awesome!
My favorite Happy Meal toys from my childhood. Had nothing to do with Disney, but Nintendo and the Super Mario Bros 3 toys. I collected nearly all of them as a kid.
Aah, Ronald McDonald, the only clown in history to have killed more people than Pennywise :D
He would go “Ran Ran Ru”.
@@Musicradio77Network Opa Opa Opa
Ronald, Pennywise, Trump, yeah, clowns are both ridiculous and evil.
And Pogo.
@@migangelmart Uummm...how the hell did TRUMP get here.
15:06 - "...in the US where items like the Big Mac were a household name"
Vincent Vega: "They call it, Le Big Mac."
It’s 2023 and grimace is back baby
I totally remember the glasswares and a small plastic tray (with a moulded cup holder) ware of sorts that can be purchased during promo week.
Back then, a Big Mac was actually...
Big Mac.
And their Filet O Fish was actually sourced and made from quality "product" of fish.
Also, the early days of the McNuggets... and my favourite, the Mc DLT
My mom bought us the McDonald's character glasses back in the 70s. I remember there was a thing about lead being in the paint.
We also had the smokey gray-colored mugs and the trash cans coin banks. My older brother had his way up into the 90s.
Had gone on a couple of class trips to restaurant, one of them being a birthday party for a classmate. No Ronald McDonald impersonator though. Was always disappointed about that.
I once found a $10 bill in the grass when I was about ten years old and went straight to McDonald's to buy the first Happy Meal. I was so happy that I don't recall getting my change back lol
Such golden memories. That was at a time when McDonald's was McDONALD'S!
and then it turned out that the guy lied during his "supersize me" film.. he was actually eating substantially more than he was claiming in the film (made possible by the fact he refused to actually release the log of his meals, which would allow independent confirmation of calorie and fat amounts), and many of the serious heath issues he suffered had been preexisting conditions due to a history of drinking heavily. though the fact he did absolutely no exercise (not even the levels you'd get from working a normal job) probably didn't help either. so all in all, a highly deceptive set of claims.
Super interesting video, thanks for covering all that up !
This video history of McDonaldland is great.I was born in 1969 and so I grew up watching the McDonaldland commercials on Saturday morning television in the 1970's and '80's.I was too young to remember the ones with that song "get yourself ready for a trip to McDonaldland".I remember I did wonder what the reasons were for the eventual disappearance of Mayor Mc Cheese,the Professor,Captain Crook so on and other changes in the campaigns etc.and you explained all this perfectly.I did not know any of this at the time! Ronald was the only one left in the campaigns by the year 2000 and today even he has disappeared also.
I remember playing at a McDonaldland playground in the mid 1980s, when I was about 3-4 years old. As a great connoisseur of playgrounds, I thought it was the absolute best at the time. Then, suddenly, there were no more playgrounds at McDonalds. This lasted a few years. Then they brought back the playgrounds. First, there were the small ones with a 4-foot height limit, introduced just after I passed that height. Then, just after my 13th birthday, they introduced larger playgrounds for ages 12 and under. While I realized that the odds that McDonald's was stalking me and deliberately excluding me from their playgrounds with their rules was slight, I couldn't help taking it a little bit personally. My mode of revenge was to simply ignore the rules and play in the playgrounds anyway. I also remember the Disney-themed Happy Meal toys. In the early 90s, when Snow White was re-released into theaters, the Happy Meals featured toys from the movie. The one I remember most was a little plastic wheeled mine cart full of diamonds, with Bashful the Dwarf hiding in them and peeking out as the cart was rolled.
I can't believe I'm defending McDonald's, but this applies to most fast food restaurants and any large amount of convenience food eating: T.V. dinners, prepared or highly processed foods, etc.
lol ty for the commercial at 7:19
i had that train from a happy meal when i was a kid and always wondered wtf it was