McDonald's

McDonald's Corporation is an American fast food company, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechristened their business as a hamburger stand, and later turned the company into a franchise, with the Golden Arches logo being introduced in 1953 at a location in Phoenix, Arizona. In 1955, Ray Kroc, a businessman, joined the company as a franchise agent and proceeded to purchase the chain from the McDonald brothers. McDonald's had its original headquarters in Oak Brook, Illinois, but moved its global headquarters to Chicago in early 2018.

McDonald's is the world's largest restaurant chain by revenue, serving over 69 million customers daily in over 100 countries across 37,855 outlets as of 2018. Although McDonald's is best known for its hamburgers, cheeseburgers and french fries, they also feature chicken products, breakfast items, soft drinks, milkshakes, wraps, and desserts. In response to changing consumer tastes and a negative backlash because of the unhealthiness of their food, the company has added to its menu salads, fish, smoothies, and fruit. The McDonald's Corporation revenues come from the rent, royalties, and fees paid by the franchisees, as well as sales in company-operated restaurants. According to two reports published in 2018, McDonald's is the world's second-largest private employer with 1.7 million employees (behind Walmart with 2.3 million employees).

Featured Channels

 * 1) Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC)
 * 2) McDonald's Corporation
 * 3) McDonald's All American Games

History
The siblings Richard and Maurice McDonald opened the first McDonald's at 1398 North E Street at West 14th Street in San Bernardino, California (at 34.1255°N 117.2946°W) on May 15, 1940, but it was not the McDonald's recognizable today; Ray Kroc made changes to the brothers' business to modernize it. The brothers introduced the "Speedee Service System" in 1948, putting into expanded use the principles of the modern fast-food restaurant that their predecessor White Castle had put into practice more than two decades earlier. The original mascot of McDonald's was a chef hat on top of a hamburger who was referred to as "Speedee". In 1962, the Golden Arches replaced Speedee as the universal mascot. The symbol, Ronald McDonald, was introduced in 1965. The clown, Ronald McDonald, appeared in advertising to target their audience of children.

On May 4, 1961, McDonald's first filed for a U.S. trademark on the name "McDonald's" with the description "Drive-In Restaurant Services", which continues to be renewed. By September 13, McDonald's, under the guidance of Ray Kroc, filed for a trademark on a new logo—an overlapping, double-arched "M" symbol. But before the double arches, McDonald's used a single arch for the architecture of their buildings. Although the "Golden Arches" logo appeared in various forms, the present version was not used until November 18, 1968, when the company was favored a U.S. trademark.

The present corporation credits its founding to franchised businessman Ray Kroc in on April 15, 1955. This was in fact the ninth opened McDonald's restaurant overall, although this location was destroyed and rebuilt in 1984. Kroc later purchased the McDonald brothers' equity in the company and begun the company's worldwide reach. Kroc was recorded as being an aggressive business partner, driving the McDonald brothers out of the industry.

Kroc and the McDonald brothers fought for control of the business, as documented in Kroc's autobiography. The San Bernardino restaurant was eventually torn down (1971, according to Juan Pollo) and the site was sold to the Juan Pollo chain in 1976. This area now serves as headquarters for the Juan Pollo chain, and a McDonald's and Route 66 museum. With the expansion of McDonald's into many international markets, the company has become a symbol of globalization and the spread of the American way of life. Its prominence has also made it a frequent topic of public debates about obesity, corporate ethics, and consumer responsibility.

Facts and Figures
McDonald's restaurants are found in 120 countries and territories around the world and serve 68 million customers each day.[18][19] McDonald's operates 37,855 restaurants worldwide, employing more than 210,000 people as of the end of 2018.[10][11][18] There are currently a total of 2,770 company-owned locations and 35,085 franchised locations, which includes 21,685 locations franchised to conventional franchisees, 7,225 locations licensed to developmental licensees, and 6,175 locations licensed to foreign affiliates.[10][11]

Focusing on its core brand, McDonald's began divesting itself of other chains it had acquired during the 1990s. The company owned a majority stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill until October 2006, when McDonald's fully divested from Chipotle through a stock exchange.[20][21] Until December 2003, it also owned Donatos Pizza, and it owned a small share of Aroma Café from 1999 to 2001. On August 27, 2007, McDonald's sold Boston Market to Sun Capital Partners.[22]

Notably, McDonald's has increased shareholder dividends for 25 consecutive years,[23] making it one of the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats.[24][25] The company is ranked 131st on the Fortune 500 of the largest United States corporations by revenue.[26] In October 2012, its monthly sales fell for the first time in nine years.[27] In 2014, its quarterly sales fell for the first time in seventeen years, when its sales dropped for the entirety of 1997.[28]

In the United States, it is reported that drive-throughs account for 70 percent of sales.[29][30] McDonald's closed down 184 restaurants in the United States in 2015, which was 59 more than what they planned to open.[31][32] This move was also the first time McDonald's had a net decrease in the number of locations in the United States since 1970.[32]

The McDonalds on-demand delivery concept, which began in 2017 with a partnership with Uber Eats and added DoorDash in 2019, now accounts for up to 3% of all business as of 2019.

Finance
For the fiscal year 2017, McDonalds reported earnings of US$5.2 billion, with an annual revenue of US$22.8 billion, a decrease of 7.3% over the previous fiscal cycle. McDonald's shares traded at over $145 per share, and its market capitalization was valued at over US$134.5 billion in September 2018.

Business Model
The company currently owns all the land, which is valued at an estimated $16 to $18 billion, on which its restaurants are situated.[citation needed] The company earns a significant portion of its revenue from rental payments from franchisees. These rent payments rose 26 percent between 2010 and 2015, accounting for one-fifth of the company's total revenue at the end of the period.[46] In recent times, there have been calls to spin off the company's US holdings into a potential real estate investment trust, but the company announced at its investor conference on November 10, 2015, that this would not happen. The CEO, Steve Easterbrook discussed that pursuing the REIT option would pose too large a risk to the company's business model.[47]

The United Kingdom and Ireland business model is different from the U.S, in that fewer than 30 percent of restaurants are franchised, with the majority under the ownership of the company. McDonald's trains its franchisees and management at Hamburger University located at its Chicago headquarters.[48][49] In other countries, McDonald's restaurants are operated by joint ventures of McDonald's Corporation and other, local entities or governments.[50]

According to Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser (2001), nearly one in eight workers in the U.S. have at some time been employed by McDonald's. Employees are encouraged by McDonald's Corp. to maintain their health by singing along to their favorite songs in order to relieve stress, attending church services in order to have a lower blood pressure, and taking two vacations annually in order to reduce risk for myocardial infarction.[51] Fast Food Nation also states that McDonald's is the largest private operator of playgrounds in the U.S., as well as the single largest purchaser of beef, pork, potatoes, and apples. The selection of meats McDonald's uses varies to some extent based on the culture of the host country.

Headquarters
On June 13, 2016, McDonald's confirmed plans to move its global headquarters to Chicago's West Loop neighborhood in the Near West Side. The 608,000-square-foot structure was built on the former site of Harpo Productions (where the Oprah Winfrey Show and several other Harpo productions taped) and opened on June 4, 2018.[5][6]

The McDonald's former headquarters complex, McDonald's Plaza, is located in Oak Brook, Illinois. It sits on the site of the former headquarters and stabling area of Paul Butler, the founder of Oak Brook.[53] McDonald's moved into the Oak Brook facility from an office within the Chicago Loop in 1971.

Board of Directors
As of January 2019, the board of directors had the following members: On March 1, 2015, after being chief brand officer of McDonald's and its former head in the UK and northern Europe, Steve Easterbrook became CEO, succeeding Don Thompson, who stepped down on January 28, 2015.
 * 1) Enrique Hernandez Jr., non-executive chairman. Also president and CEO of Inter-Con Security
 * 2) Lloyd H. Dean, president and CEO of Dignity Health
 * 3) Stephen J. Easterbrook, president and CEO of McDonald's
 * 4) Robert A. Eckert, operating partner of Friedman Fleischer & Lowe
 * 5) Margaret H. Georgiadis, CEO of Ancestry.com
 * 6) Jeanne P. Jackson, CEO of MSP Capital
 * 7) Richard H. Lenny, non-executive of Conagra Brands, Inc.
 * 8) John J. Mulligan, executive vice president and COO of Target Corporation
 * 9) Sheila A. Penrose, non-executive chairman of Jones Lang LaSalle Incorpoated
 * 10) John W. Rogers Jr., chairman and CEO of Ariel Investments, LLC
 * 11) Miles D. White, chairman and CEO of Abbott Laboratories
 * 12) Andrew J. McKenna, chairman emeritus. Also chairman emeritus of Schwarz Supply Source

Global Operations
McDonald's has become emblematic of globalization, sometimes referred to as the "McDonaldization" of society. The Economist newspaper uses the "Big Mac Index": the comparison of a Big Mac's cost in various world currencies can be used to informally judge these currencies' purchasing power parity. Switzerland has the most expensive Big Mac in the world as of July 2015, while the country with the least expensive Big Mac is India[56][57] (albeit for a Maharaja Mac—the next cheapest Big Mac is Hong Kong).[58]

Thomas Friedman said that no country with a McDonald's had gone to war with another;[59][60] however, the "Golden Arches Theory of Conflict Prevention" is incorrect. Exceptions are the 1989 United States invasion of Panama, NATO's bombing of Serbia in 1999, the 2006 Lebanon War, and the 2008 South Ossetia war. McDonald's suspended operations in its corporate-owned stores in Crimea after Russia annexed the region in 2014.[61] On August 20, 2014, as tensions between the United States and Russia strained over events in Ukraine, and the resultant U.S. sanctions, the Russian government temporarily shut down four McDonald's outlets in Moscow, citing sanitary concerns. The company has operated in Russia since 1990 and at August 2014 had 438 stores across the country.[62] On August 23, 2014, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich ruled out any government move to ban McDonald's and dismissed the notion that the temporary closures had anything to do with the sanctions.[63]

Some observers have suggested that the company should be given credit for increasing the standard of service in markets that it enters. A group of anthropologists in a study entitled Golden Arches East[64] looked at the impact McDonald's had on East Asia and Hong Kong, in particular. When it opened in Hong Kong in 1975, McDonald's was the first restaurant to consistently offer clean restrooms, driving customers to demand the same of other restaurants and institutions. McDonald's has taken to partnering up with Sinopec, the second largest oil company in the People's Republic of China, as it takes advantage of the country's growing use of personal vehicles by opening numerous drive-thru restaurants.[65] McDonald's has opened a McDonald's restaurant and McCafé on the underground premises of the French fine arts museum, The Louvre.[66]

The company stated it would open vegetarian-only restaurants in India by mid-2013.[67] Foreign restaurants are banned in Bermuda, with the exception of KFC, which was present before the current law was passed. Therefore, there are no McDonald's in Bermuda.[68][unreliable source?]

On January 9, 2017, 80% of the franchise rights in the mainland China and in Hong Kong were sold for US$2.080 billion to a consortium of CITIC Limited (for 32%) and private equity funds managed by CITIC Capital (for 20%) and Carlyle (for 20%), which CITIC Limited and CITIC Capital would also formed a joint venture to own the stake.[69]

On April 1, 2019, Nations Restaurant News reported that McDonald's made a rare choice, spending $3.7 million to invest in Plexure (a New Zealand app developer), which makes this investment a first for McDonald's.

Products
McDonald's predominantly sells hamburgers, various types of chicken, chicken sandwiches, French fries, soft drinks, breakfast items, and desserts. In most markets, McDonald's offers salads and vegetarian items, wraps and other localized fare. On a seasonal basis, McDonald's offers the McRib sandwich. Some speculate the seasonality of the McRib adds to its appeal.[71]

Products are offered as either "dine-in" (where the customer opts to eat in the restaurant) or "take-out" (where the customer opts to take the food off the premises). "Dine-in" meals are provided on a plastic tray with a paper insert on the floor of the tray. "Take-out" meals are usually delivered with the contents enclosed in a distinctive McDonald's-branded brown paper bag. In both cases, the individual items are wrapped or boxed as appropriate.

Since Steve Easterbrook became CEO of the company, McDonald's has streamlined the menu which in the United States contained nearly 200 items. The company has also looked to introduce healthier options, and removed high-fructose corn syrup from hamburger buns. The company has also removed artificial preservatives from Chicken McNuggets,[72] replacing chicken skin, safflower oil and citric acid found in Chicken McNuggets with pea starch, rice starch and powdered lemon juice.[73]

In September 2018, McDonald's USA announced that they no longer use artificial preservatives, flavors and colors entirely from seven classic burgers sold in the U.S., including the hamburger, cheeseburger, double cheeseburger, McDouble, Quarter Pounder with Cheese, double Quarter Pounder with Cheese and the Big Mac.[74][75] Nevertheless, the pickles will still be made with an artificial preservative, although customers can choose to opt out of getting pickles with their burgers.

International Menue Variations
Restaurants in several countries, particularly in Asia, serve soup. This local deviation from the standard menu is a characteristic for which the chain is particularly known, and one which is employed either to abide by regional food taboos (such as the religious prohibition of beef consumption in India) or to make available foods with which the regional market is more familiar (such as the sale of McRice in Indonesia, or Ebi (prawn) Burger in Singapore and Japan).

In Germany and some other Western European countries, McDonald's sells beer. In New Zealand, McDonald's sells meat pies, after the local affiliate partially relaunched the Georgie Pie fast food chain it bought out in 1996.[78]

In the United States and Canada, after limited trials on a regional basis, McDonald's began offering in 2015[79] and 2017,[80] respectively, a partial breakfast menu during all hours its restaurants are open.

Types of Restaurants
Most standalone McDonald's restaurants offer both counter service and drive-through service, with indoor and sometimes outdoor seating.[81] Drive-Thru, Auto-Mac, Pay and Drive, or "McDrive" as it is known in many countries, often has separate stations for placing, paying for, and picking up orders, though the latter two steps are frequently combined;[81] it was first introduced in Sierra Vista, Arizona in 1975,[82] following the lead of other fast-food chains. The first such restaurant in Britain opened at Fallowfield, Manchester in 1986.

McDrive
In some countries, "McDrive" locations near highways offer no counter service or seating.[84] In contrast, locations in high-density city neighborhoods often omit drive-through service.[85] There are also a few locations, mostly in downtown districts, that offer a "Walk-Thru" service in place of Drive-Thru.

McCafe
McCafé is a café-style accompaniment to McDonald's restaurants and is a concept created by McDonald's Australia (also known, and marketed, as "Macca's" in Australia), starting with Melbourne in 1993.[87] As of 2016, most McDonald's in Australia have McCafés located within the existing McDonald's restaurant. In Tasmania, there are McCafés in every restaurant, with the rest of the states quickly following suit.[81] After upgrading to the new McCafé look and feel, some Australian restaurants have noticed up to a 60 percent increase in sales. At the end of 2003, there were over 600 McCafés worldwide.

"Creat Your Own Taste" Restaurants
From 2015–2016, McDonald's tried a new gourmet burger service and restaurant concept based on other gourmet restaurants such as Shake Shack and Grill'd. It was rolled out for the first time in Australia during the early months of 2015 and expanded to China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Arabia and New Zealand, with ongoing trials in the US market. In dedicated "Create Your Taste" (CYT) kiosks, customers could choose all ingredients including type of bun and meat along with optional extras. In late 2015 the Australian CYT service introduced CYT salads.

After a person had ordered, McDonald's advised that wait times were between 10–15 minutes. When the food was ready, trained crew ('hosts') brought the food to the customer's table. Instead of McDonald's usual cardboard and plastic packaging, CYT food was presented on wooden boards, fries in wire baskets and salads in china bowls with metal cutlery. A higher price applied.

In November 2016, Create Your Taste was replaced by a "Signature Crafted Recipes" program designed to be more efficient and less expensive.

Other
Some locations are connected to gas stations/convenience stores,[89] while others called McExpress have limited seating and/or menu or may be located in a shopping mall. Other McDonald's are located in Walmart stores. McStop is a location targeted at truckers and travelers which may have services found at truck stops.[90]

In Sweden, customers who order a happy meal can use the meal's container for a pair of happy goggles.[91] The company created a game for the goggles known as "Slope Stars.[91] " McDonald's predicts happy goggles will continue in other countries.[91] In the Netherlands, McDonald's has introduced McTrax that doubles as a recording studio; it reacts to touch.[91] They can create their own beats with a synth and tweak sounds with special effects.

Special Diets
The first kosher McDonald's was established in 1997 at the Abasto de Buenos Aires mall in Buenos Aires, Argentina. There are also many kosher branches in Israel.

Playgrounds
McDonald's playgrounds are called McDonald's PlayPlace. Some McDonald's in suburban areas and certain cities feature large indoor or outdoor playgrounds. The first PlayPlace with the familiar crawl-tube design with ball pits and slides was introduced in 1987 in the US, with many more being constructed soon after.

McDonald's Next
McDonald's Next use open-concept design and offer "Create Your Taste" digital ordering. The concept store also offers free mobile device charging and table service after 6:00 pm. The first store opened in Hong Kong in December 2015.

2006 Redesign
In 2006, McDonald's introduced its "Forever Young" brand by redesigning all of its restaurants, the first major redesign since the 1970s.[95][96]

The goal of the redesign is to be more like a coffee shop, similar to Starbucks. The design includes wooden tables, faux-leather chairs, and muted colors; the red was muted to terracotta, the yellow was shifted to golden for a more "sunny" look, and olive and sage green were also added.

To create a warmer look, the restaurants have less plastic and more brick and wood, with modern hanging lights to produce a softer glow. Many restaurants now feature free Wi-Fi and flat-screen TVs. Other upgrades include double drive-thrus, flat roofs instead of the angled red roofs, and replacing fiber glass with wood. Also, instead of the familiar golden arches, the restaurants now feature "semi-swooshes" (half of a golden arch), similar to the Nike swoosh.

Smoking Ban
McDonald's began banning smoking in 1994 when it restricted customers from smoking within its 1,400 wholly owned restaurants.

Automation
Since the late 1990s, McDonald's has attempted to replace employees with electronic kiosks which would perform actions such as taking orders and accepting money. In 1999, McDonald's first tested "E-Clerks" in suburban Chicago, Illinois, and Wyoming, Michigan, with the devices being able to "save money on live staffers" and attracting larger purchase amounts than average employees.[99]

In 2013, the University of Oxford estimated that in the succeeding decades, there was a 92% probability of food preparation and serving to become automated in fast food establishments.[100] By 2016, McDonald's "Create Your Taste" electronic kiosks were seen in some restaurants internationally where customers could custom order meals. As employees pushed for higher wages in the late-2010s, some believed that fast food companies such as McDonald's would use the devices to cut costs for employing individuals.[101]

In September 2019, McDonald's purchased an AI-based start-up Apprente for replacing human servers with voice-based technology in its US drive-throughs.

Wages
On August 5, 2013, The Guardian revealed that 90 percent of McDonald's UK workforce are on zero hour contracts, making it possibly the largest such private sector employer in the country.[103] A study released by Fast Food Forward conducted by Anzalone Liszt Grove Research showed that approximately 84 percent of all fast food employees working in New York City in April 2013 had been paid less than their legal wages by their employers.[104]

From 2007 to 2011, fast food workers in the US drew an average of $7 billion of public assistance annually resulting from receiving low wages.[105] The McResource website advised employees to break their food into smaller pieces to feel fuller, seek refunds for unopened holiday purchases, sell possessions online for quick cash, and to "quit complaining" as "stress hormone levels rise by 15 percent after ten minutes of complaining."[106] In December 2013, McDonald's shut down the McResource website amidst negative publicity and criticism. McDonald's plans to continue an internal telephone help line through which its employees can obtain advice on work and life problems.[107]

Liberal think tank, the Roosevelt Institute, accuses some McDonald's restaurants of actually paying less than the minimum wage to entry positions due to 'rampant' wage theft.[108] In South Korea, McDonald's pays part-time employees $5.50 an hour and is accused of paying less with arbitrary schedules adjustments and pay delays.[109] In late 2015, Anonymous aggregated data collected by Glassdoor suggests that McDonald's in the United States pays entry-level employees between $7.25 an hour and $11 an hour, with an average of $8.69 an hour. Shift managers get paid an average of $10.34 an hour. Assistant managers get paid an average of $11.57 an hour.[110] McDonald's CEO, Steve Easterbrook, currently earns an annual salary of $1,100,000.[111] His total compensation for 2017 was $21,761,052.

Strikes
McDonald's workers have on occasions decided to strike over pay, with most of the employees on strike seeking to be paid $15.00.[113] When interviewed about the strikes occurring, former McDonald's CEO Ed Rensi stated: "It's cheaper to buy a $35,000 robotic arm than it is to hire an employee who's inefficient making $15 an hour bagging french fries" with Rensi explaining that increasing employee wages could possibly take away from entry-level jobs.[114] However, according to Easterbrook, increasing wages and benefits for workers saw a 6% increase in customer satisfaction when comparing 2015's first quarter data to the first quarter of 2016, with greater returns seen as a result.[114]

In September 2017, two British McDonald's stores agreed to a strike over zero-hours contracts for staff. Picket lines were formed around the two stores in Crayford and Cambridge. The strike was supported by the Leader of the Opposition, Jeremy Corbyn.

Occupation
Workers at the McDonald's franchise at Saint-Barthelemy, Marseille, occupied the restaurant, in protest against its planned closure. Employing 77 people the restaurant is the second-biggest private sector employer in Saint-Barthélémy, which has an unemployment rate of 30 per cent.[117] Lawyers for Kamel Guemari, a shop steward at the franchise, claimed an attempt was made to kill him when a car drove at him in the restaurant car park.

Working Conditions
In March 2015, McDonald's workers in 19 US cities filed 28 health and safety complaints with the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration which allege that low staffing, lack of protective gear, poor training and pressure to work fast has resulted in injuries. The complaints also allege that, because of a lack of first aid supplies, workers were told by management to treat burn injuries with condiments such as mayonnaise and mustard.[120] The Fight for $15 labor organization aided the workers in filing the complaints.

Animal Welfare Standards
In 2015, McDonald's pledged to stop using eggs from battery cage facilities by 2025. Since McDonald's purchases over 2 billion eggs per year or 4 percent of eggs produced in the United States, the switch is expected to have a major impact on the egg industry and is part of a general trend toward cage-free eggs driven by consumer concern over the harsh living conditions of hens.[122][123] The aviary systems from which the new eggs will be sourced are troubled by much higher mortality rates, as well as introducing environmental and worker safety problems.[124] The high hen mortality rate, which is more than double that of battery cage systems, will require new research to mitigate. The facilities also have higher ammonia levels due to faeces being kicked up into the air. Producers raised concerns about the production cost, which is expected to increase by 36 percent.[125]

McDonald's continues to source pork from facilities that use gestation crates, and in 2012 pledged to phase them out.

Marketing and Advertising
McDonald's has for decades maintained an extensive advertising campaign. In addition to the usual media (television, radio, and newspaper), the company makes significant use of billboards and signage, and also sponsors sporting events ranging from Little League to the FIFA World Cup and Olympic Games.[127] Television has played a central role in the company's advertising strategy.[128] To date, McDonald's has used 23 different slogans in United States advertising, as well as a few other slogans for select countries and regions.

Ronald McDonald
Ronald McDonald is a clown character used as the primary mascot of the McDonald's fast-food restaurant chain. In television commercials, the clown inhabited a fantasy world called McDonaldland, in which he had adventures with his friends Mayor McCheese, the Hamburglar, Grimace, Birdie the Early Bird and The Fry Kids. By 2003, McDonaldland has been dropped from McDonald's advertising, in which Ronald is instead shown interacting with normal children in their everyday lives.

Many people work full-time making appearances in the Ronald McDonald costume, visiting children in hospitals and attending regular events. At its height there may have been as many as 300 full-time clowns at McDonald's. There are also Ronald McDonald Houses, where parents can stay overnight when visiting sick children in nearby chronic care facilities.

Willard Scott
The origin of Ronald McDonald involves Willard Scott (at the time, a local radio personality who also played Bozo the Clown on WRC-TV in Washington, D.C. from 1959 until 1962), who performed using the moniker "Ronald McDonald, the Hamburger-Happy Clown" in 1963 on three separate television spots. These were the first three television ads featuring the character.[3]

Scott, who went on to become NBC-TV's Today Show weatherman, claims to have created Ronald McDonald according to the following excerpt from 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.[3] At the time, Scott was working for Oscar Goldstein, the Washington DC area McDonald's franchisee, and numerous sources describe Scott's role as only playing the part of Ronald McDonald, while giving credit for the creation of the mascot to Goldstein and his ad agency.

McDonald's Version
McDonald's does not mention George Voorhis or acknowledge that Willard Scott created Ronald in their statement:

"The smile known around the world," Ronald McDonald is second only to Santa Claus in terms of recognition. (According to one survey, 96% of all schoolchildren in the United States of America recognize Ronald (stunning-stuff.com)). In his first television appearance in 1963, the clown was portrayed by Willard Scott.

Nonetheless, on March 28, 2000, Henry Gonzalez, McDonald's Northeast Division President, thanked Scott for creating Ronald McDonald during a taped tribute to Scott on the Today Show.

Circus performer Coco the Clown (real name Michael Polakovs) was hired in 1966 to revamp Ronald's image, creating the now familiar costume and make-up.[5]

In 2010, the Corporate Accountability International in Boston, Massachusetts, suggested Ronald McDonald should retire due to childhood obesity.[6] However, McDonald's CEO Jim Skinner said there are no plans to retire him.[7]

In April 2011, McDonald's announced that Ronald McDonald will reappear in their commercials, but Ace Metrix stated Ronald McDonald ads are no longer effective.[8] On May 18, 2011, Corporate Accountability International renewed their call to retire Ronald McDonald by running ads in major newspapers and launching several web pages dedicated to the retirement of the character.[9] However, McDonald's CEO Jim Skinner defended Ronald McDonald by saying that he is an ambassador for good and "it's all about choice". Shortly after, McDonald's announced that Ronald McDonald was "here to stay".[10]

In April 2014, McDonald's announced that Ronald McDonald would have a whole new look and new outfits. They also announced that he would be featured in their new commercials as well as on social media websites like Twitter.[11] As part of Ronald's makeover, his jumpsuit has been dropped in favor of yellow cargo pants, a vest and a red-and-white striped rugby shirt; his classic clown shoes remain part of the official uniform.

Actors
At any given time, there are dozens to hundreds of actors retained by McDonald's to appear as Ronald McDonald in restaurants and events. It is assumed, however, that the company uses only one actor at a time to play the character in national television commercials. Following is a list of primary American Ronald McDonald actors. Various forms of the name "Ronald McDonald" as well as costume clown face persona, etc. are registered trademarks of McDonald's. McDonald's trains performers to portray Ronald using identical mannerisms and costume, to contribute to the illusion that they are one character. McDonald's marketing designers and stylists changed elements of the Ronald McDonald character, persona, style, costume and clown face when they adopted the clown as a trademark.
 * 1) Willard Scott (Washington, D.C. 1963–1965)
 * 2) Bev Bergeron (Southern California, 1966–1968)
 * 3) George Voorhis (Southern California, 1968–1988)
 * 4) Michael Polakovs (1965–1968)
 * 5) Ray Rayner (1968–1969)
 * 6) King Moody (1969–1985)
 * 7) Squire Fridell (1985–1991)
 * 8) Jack Doepke (1991–1999)
 * 9) David Hussey (2000–2014)
 * 10) Brad Lennon (2014–present)

McDonaldland
McDonaldland was a fantasy world used in the marketing for McDonald's restaurants during the 1970s through the 1990s. McDonaldland was inhabited by Ronald McDonald and other characters. In addition to being used in advertising, the characters were used as the basis for equipment in the "PlayPlaces" attached to some McDonald's. The McDonaldland commercials alongside the characters were dropped from McDonald's advertising in 2003, but Ronald McDonald is still seen in commercials and in Happy Meal toys.

Space Exploration
McDonald's and NASA explored an advertising agreement for a planned mission to the asteroid 449 Hamburga; however, the spacecraft was eventually cancelled.

Sponsorship in NASCAR
McDonald's entered the NASCAR Cup series in 1977, sponsoring Richard Childress for one race. Between the years 1977 and 1986, McDonald's would only sponsor a handful of races in a season. In 1993, McDonald's would become the full-time sponsor for the No. 27 Junior Johnson & Associates Ford, driven by Hut Stricklin. In 1994, Stricklin would be replaced in the car by Jimmy Spencer, who would go on and win twice that season. The following season McDonald's would move over to the No. 94 Bill Elliott Racing Ford, driven by team-owner, Bill Elliott. McDonald's would stay will Elliott until the 2001 season when they moved again, this time to the No. 96 PPI Motorsports Ford, driven by rookie Andy Houston. However, when the team failed to field a car for the entire season, McDonald's became absent from NASCAR until 2004, when it joined Evernham Motorsports, becoming a part-time sponsor for drivers Bill Elliott, Kasey Kahne, Elliott Sadler, A.J. Allmendinger, and Reed Sorenson all the way until 2010. During the 2010 season, McDonald's would enter its longest partnership with a team. Sponsoring select races with Chip Gannasi Racing's No. 1 Chevrolet, driven by Jamie McMurray, McDonald's would go and sponsor McMurray until his retirement in the 2019 Daytona 500. In 2019, McDonald's would stay with Chip Ganassi Racing, switching to the No. 42 car, driven by Kyle Larson. McDonald's would also sponsor Richard Petty Motorsports No. 43 Chevrolet, driven by Darrell Wallace Jr., for a single race. As of November 2019, McDonald's still sponsors the No. 42 Chevrolet driven by Kyle Larson.

Sports Awards and Honors
McDonald's is the title sponsor of the McDonald's All-American Game, all-star basketball games played each year for American and Canadian boys' and girls' high school basketball graduates.

Gallery
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