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For the video game see McDonald Land

McDonaldland was a fantasy world, inhabited by Ronald McDonald and other characters, which was formerly used in marketing for McDonald's. In addition to being used in advertising, the characters were used as the basis for equipment in the playgrounds attached to some McDonald's. The Land has been overall abandoned in their marketing brands, as well as the supporting characters, but the main character Ronald McDonald is still seen in their commercials and in Happy Meal toys.

History

Cycle one of McDonaldland began in January 1971, about the same time McDonald's was replacing its drive-ins with mansard roofed restaurants. These early commercials were built on an upbeat, bubble-gum style tune, and featured a narrator; many had plots that involved various villains trying to steal a corresponding food item, foiled by Ronald. McDonaldland itself, as it was depicted in the commercials, was a magical place where plants, foods, and inanimate objects were living, speaking characters. In addition to being the home to Ronald and the other core characters, McDonaldland boasted "Thick shake volcanoes", anthropomorphized "Apple pie trees", "The Hamburger Patch" (where McDonald's hamburgers grew out of the ground like plants), "Filet-O-Fish Lake", and many other fanciful features based around various McDonald's menu items. In the commercials, the various beings are played by puppets or costumed performers, very similar to those used in the popular H.R. Pufnstuf program.

Lawsuit

Needham Harper & Steers, an ad agency (now known as the Omnicom Group) vying for McDonald's advertising accounts had originally hoped Sid and Marty Krofft, the creators of H.R. Pufnstuf, would agree to license their characters for commercial promotions. After the McDonaldland promotion went forward, the Kroffts were dismissed without being credited.^[1]

In 1973, the Kroffts successfully sued McDonald's, arguing that the entire McDonaldland premise was essentially a ripoff of their television show. Specifically, the Kroffts claimed that the character Mayor McCheese was a direct ripoff of their character, "H. R. Pufnstuf" (being a mayor himself). McDonald's initially was ordered to pay $50,000. The case was later remanded as to damages, and McDonald's was ordered to pay the Kroffts more than $1,000,000 when the case was finally settled in 1977. As a result of the lawsuit, the concept of the "magical place" was all but phased out of the commercials, as were many of the original characters.

1980s to 2007

The characters that remained following the lawsuit were Ronald McDonald, Grimace, Hamburglar, and the French Fry Gobblins (later renamed the Fry Guys, in an apparent attempt to make them seem more kid-friendly). Birdie the Early Bird would join the fold soon after, representing the restaurant's new breakfast line in the early 1980s. From then on, the characters seemed to live in the real world and they interacted with real-life characters, but commercials still fell under the blanket of "McDonaldland". Soon after, the Happy Meal Gang and the McNugget Buddies were prominent features in the commercials (representing the restaurant's "Happy Meals" and "Chicken McNuggets" respectively, being the menu items that mainly appealed to kids) along with Ronald.

At one point, McDonald's released a video tape series titled The Wacky Adventures of Ronald McDonald. The series depicted Ronald, Grimace, Birdie, Hamburglar, and a few new characters like Ronald's pessimistic dog, Sundae. These videos would begin in live action, in what resembled a modern-day McDonaldland. Then when the characters would enter down a tube, or other means of travel, they would become animated. The video series had 7 parts and were available for purchase in McDonald's restaurants.

In recent years, the McDonaldland premise has largely been phased out of advertising campaigns, with modern commercials usually just depicting Ronald alone in "real world" situations with real children.

Characters

Ronald McDonald - The primary icon of McDonald's characters.

Sundae - Ronald's dog, only appears in the "Wacky Adventures of Ronald McDonald"

Grimace - Grimace is an anthropomorphic purple tastebud. Initially, 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. Commercials and merchandise generally portrayed him as a well-meaning simpleton, whose clumsy antics provided a comic foil to Ronald McDonald. The character was retained after the streamlining of the characters in the '80s. His Uncle O'Grimacey [see below] would visit only one month per year, bringing Shamrock Shakes. Additional family were revealed in a McDonaldland VHS tape "The Legend of Grimace Island": He has an unnamed mom, an unnamed dad, a grandma named "Winky", a great, great grandma named Jenny Grimace, and a possible ancestor named "King Gonga". King Gonga is the king of all Grimaces. Grimace was voiced by Frank Welker, and later by Kevin Michael Richardson. In "Grimace's Oddysey", Grimace has the hobby of ham radio and often sends out transmissions through a homemade transmitter made from a colander.

The Hamburglar - Hamburglar was a thief who was dressed in a black-and-white hooped shirt and pants, a red cape, a wide-brimmed hat, and red gloves whose primary object of theft was hamburgers. The Hamburglar's early dialog was a continual muttering of "BURGER, BURGER, BURGER." His catchphrase was "Robble, Robble" which he commonly said with Captain Crook occasionally translating for him. Later dialogue included normal words in a child-like voice. He was originally voiced by Howard Morris (who also directed many of the TV spots), and later by Charlie Adler and Carl W Wolfe.^[2], until the character was retired. In the 2000s, he was temporarily revived for an ad campaign for generic burgers instead of Happy Meals.

Birdie the Early Bird - She 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. In the ads she is frequently portrayed as a poor flyer, and somewhat clumsy in general. Birdie's origin is explained in one old commercial: a giant egg falls from the night sky into McDonaldland, and Ronald McDonald decides to show the egg love. When the egg hatches, Birdie was so happy that she had already made friends that she decided to stay in McDonaldland. Birdie was voiced by Russi Taylor.

Fry Kids - They 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. Accompanying them was the "Keep Your Eyes on Your Fries" jingle. Their name was later changed to the Fry Guys, then the Fry Kids, as female characters (the "Fry Girls") were introduced. They are differently-colored, shaggy, ball-like creatures with long legs and no arms, almost resembling a pom-pon with legs and eyes. Most of the time they are mute, but when they speak they talk in some sort of gibberish. In other commercials, they all talk very quickly at once. Their only facial features are bulbous eyes and thick, black eyebrows. The characters were retained after the streamlining of the characters in the '80s.

Mayor McCheese - 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. He was based on H.R. Pufnstuf. The character was dropped during the streamlining of the characters in the 1980s, He did, however, appear in a 1999 McDonaldland VHS entitled "Have Time, Will Travel". Mayor McCheese was voiced by Howard Morris impersonating Ed Wynn.

Officer 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 with a disproportionately small custodian helmet resting atop his head bun. As the main source of law and order in McDonaldland, Big Mac spent most of his time chasing the Hamburglar and Captain Crook. He was featured in several of the campaign's commercials throughout the late '70s and early '80s. The character was dropped during the streamlining of the characters in the '80s.

Captain Crook - Captain Crook was a pirate and is similar in appearance to the famed Captain Hook from Disney's 1953 movie 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. He would often translate for Hamburglar. As part of the nautical theme of the character, Captain Crook used ships and waterways as means to escape being captured. In his final appearances, he was renamed simply "The Captain" and his character design made less sinister. The character was dropped during the streamlining of the characters in the '80s. Captain Crook was voiced by Lennie Weinrib.

The Hamburger Patch - 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. Advertisements featuring the Hamburger Patch were shown as evidence during the McLibel court case in the United Kingdom. During questioning by defendants, McDonald's Senior Vice President of Marketing David Green admitted that showing the reality of meat production "would not be very appetizing". The Hamburger Patch also featured in books and toys used to promote McDonald's. The characters were dropped during the streamlining of the characters in the '80s.

Iam Hungry - 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. He would often appear when Ronald was dining with kids and would constantly crave food; he would never leave them alone until he got fed. Iam Hungry was voiced by Jeff Lupetin.

CosMc - 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. CosMc was an alien who wore a large space suit, and he talked like a surfer dude. CosMc was featured as a character in the video game, M.C. Kids.

Griddler - A short-lived McDonaldland character. He was featured in 2 commercials in 2003 to promote the McGriddle by stealing them from Ronald and his friends.

The Happy Meal Gang - A Cheeseburger, soft drink, and fries in regular size. They were later joined by the McNugget Buddies.

The Professor - A mad scientist type character in a lab coat. He was introduced in 1971. The Professor was voiced by Howard Morris in the 70's and by Andre Stojka in the 80's

Uncle O'Grimacey - He was created for an advertising narrative of the McDonald's fast food restaurant chain both in celebration of Saint Patrick's Day and to mark the annual appearance of the Shamrock Shake. O'Grimacey is the Irish uncle of the character Grimace and is a variant of the Grimace-design in that he is green instead of purple, sports a frock coat covered with several four-leaf clovers, and carries a shillelagh. His design motif is not unlike that of a stereotypical depiction of the Irish folkloric leprechaun, similar to the mascot of the football team for University of Notre Dame. O'Grimacey resides in his home country for eleven months of the year and visits his nephew Grimace in March, bringing with him his "incredibly delicious" shake. Uncle O'Grimacey is no longer used by the chain for its promotions of the shake.

Mike the Microphone - He was a one-time character created for the Kid Rhino album Ronald McDonald presents Silly Sing Along. He guards the door and runs things inside the McDonaldland Magical Radio Station, which Ronald and some kids use for their "Silly Day Broadcast". Mike was voiced by Larry Moran.

Popular Culture

Mayor McCheese appears in the Family Guy episode "Believe It or Not, Joe's Walking on Air." Dr. Hartman tells Mayor McCheese that he can't give him cosmetic surgery because his head is a cheeseburger. Mayor McCheese thanks Dr. Hartman for giving him the straight facts. In "Road to the Multiverse," Brian and Stewie end up in a universe where Frank Sinatra wasn't born to influence John F. Kennedy's election and Richard Nixon botched up the Cuban Missile Crisis plunging the Earth into World War III. When Brian quotes that Lee Harvey Oswald never shot John F. Kennedy, Stewie quotes that Lee Harvey Oswald shot Mayor McCheese. It then cuts to a scene with Mayor McCheese in his motorcade being shot two times as his wife ends up eating parts of the meat that were shot off.

Mayor McCheese and Hamburglar appear in the Robot Chicken episode "The Sack" voiced by Seth Green. In a segment that shows Mayor McCheese running against Arnold Schwarzenegger, a reporter asks Mayor McCheese how his views against Arnold Schwarzenegger differ due to the fact that he has a cheeseburger for a head. Mayor McCheese states that the cheeseburger head is a birth defect. Another reporter asks about allegations where he takes women to motel rooms and pay them to go to the bathroom on his chest. Mayor McCheese ends up speechless as Hamburglar (who is serving as his election manager) comes out on stage quoting "Robble Robble Robble" before pulling Mayor McCheese off stage.

Mayor McCheese appeared in the Clerks: The Animated Series episode "Leonardo Is Caught in the Grip of an Outbreak of Randal's Imagination and Patrick Swayze Either Does or Doesn't Work in the New Pet Store" voiced by Al Franken.

McDonaldland was featured in the CollegeHumor cartoon "McFuneral." Following the death of Ronald McDonald from massive coronary, diabetes, and organ failure, the other McDonaldland characters mourn Ronald's death at his funeral. When everyone is at McFlurries following the funeral, Birdie arrives late since breakfast didn't end until 10:30. Hamburglar crashes the McFlurries revealing secrets he found out like Ronald McDonald keeping the press from learning that Officer Big Mac strangled a hooker, kept Mayor McCheese in office by eliminating his opponents and using their parts to make chicken nuggets, helping to father Birdie's daughter, and Grimace enjoying "picking from the Kids' Menu." Before Hamburglar could take control of McDonaldland, the McFlurries restaurant everyone was in was bombed by The Burger King.^[3]

References

^ Was McDonaldland plagiarized from the old "H. R. Pufnstuf" kids' TV show?
^ Voice Chasers, vocal credits.
^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLlvTzkr8UY

@@ Line 19: / Line 19: @@
 ==Characters==
-* '''[[Ronald McDonald]]''', the primary icon of McDonald's characters.
+* '''[[Ronald McDonald]]''' - The primary icon of McDonald's characters.
-* '''Sundae''', Ronald's dog, only appears in the "Wacky Adventures of Ronald McDonald"
+* '''Sundae''' - Ronald's dog, only appears in the "Wacky Adventures of Ronald McDonald"
-* '''Grimace'''. Grimace is an [[anthropomorphism|anthropomorphic]] purple [[tastebud]]. Initially, 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. Commercials and merchandise generally portrayed him as a well-meaning simpleton, whose clumsy antics provided a [[double act|comic foil]] to Ronald McDonald. The character was retained after the streamlining of the characters in the '80s. His Uncle O'Grimacey [see below] would visit only one month per year, bringing Shamrock Shakes. Additional family were revealed in a McDonaldland [[VHS]] tape "The Legend of Grimace Island": He has an unnamed mom, an unnamed dad, a grandma named "Winky", a great, great grandma named Jenny Grimace, and a possible ancestor named "King Gonga". King Gonga is the king of all Grimaces. Grimace was voiced by [[Frank Welker]], and later by [[Kevin Michael Richardson]]. In "Grimace's Oddysey", Grimace has the hobby of ham radio and often sends out transmissions through a homemade transmitter made from a colander.
+* '''Grimace''' - Grimace is an [[anthropomorphism|anthropomorphic]] purple [[tastebud]]. Initially, 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. Commercials and merchandise generally portrayed him as a well-meaning simpleton, whose clumsy antics provided a [[double act|comic foil]] to Ronald McDonald. The character was retained after the streamlining of the characters in the '80s. His Uncle O'Grimacey [see below] would visit only one month per year, bringing Shamrock Shakes. Additional family were revealed in a McDonaldland [[VHS]] tape "The Legend of Grimace Island": He has an unnamed mom, an unnamed dad, a grandma named "Winky", a great, great grandma named Jenny Grimace, and a possible ancestor named "King Gonga". King Gonga is the king of all Grimaces. Grimace was voiced by [[Frank Welker]], and later by [[Kevin Michael Richardson]]. In "Grimace's Oddysey", Grimace has the hobby of ham radio and often sends out transmissions through a homemade transmitter made from a colander.
-* The '''Hamburglar''' character was a [[thief]] who was dressed in a black-and-white hooped shirt and pants, a red cape, a wide-brimmed hat, and red gloves whose primary object of theft was [[hamburger]]s.  The Hamburglar's early dialog was a continual muttering of "BURGER, BURGER, BURGER." Later dialog included normal words in a child-like voice. He was originally voiced by [[Howard Morris]] (who also directed many of the TV spots), and later by [[Charlie Adler]] and Carl W Wolfe.<ref name="Voice Chasers">[http://voicechasers.com/database/showactor.php?actorid=8980 Voice Chasers], vocal credits.</ref>, until the character was retired. His catchphrase was "Robble, robble." In the 2000s, he was temporarily revived for an ad campaign for generic burgers instead of Happy Meals.
+* The '''Hamburglar''' - Hamburglar was a [[thief]] who was dressed in a black-and-white hooped shirt and pants, a red cape, a wide-brimmed hat, and red gloves whose primary object of theft was [[hamburger]]s.  The Hamburglar's early dialog was a continual muttering of "BURGER, BURGER, BURGER." His catchphrase was "Robble, Robble" which he commonly said with Captain Crook occasionally translating for him. Later dialogue included normal words in a child-like voice. He was originally voiced by [[Howard Morris]] (who also directed many of the TV spots), and later by [[Charlie Adler]] and Carl W Wolfe.<ref name="Voice Chasers">[http://voicechasers.com/database/showactor.php?actorid=8980 Voice Chasers], vocal credits.</ref>, until the character was retired. In the 2000s, he was temporarily revived for an ad campaign for generic burgers instead of Happy Meals.
-* '''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. In the ads she is frequently portrayed as a poor flyer, and somewhat clumsy in general. Birdie's origin is explained in one old commercial: a giant egg falls from the night sky into McDonaldland, and Ronald McDonald decides to show the egg love. When the egg hatches, Birdie was so happy that she had already made friends that she decided to stay in McDonaldland. Birdie was voiced by [[Russi Taylor]].
+* '''Birdie the Early Bird''' - She 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. In the ads she is frequently portrayed as a poor flyer, and somewhat clumsy in general. Birdie's origin is explained in one old commercial: a giant egg falls from the night sky into McDonaldland, and Ronald McDonald decides to show the egg love. When the egg hatches, Birdie was so happy that she had already made friends that she decided to stay in McDonaldland. Birdie was voiced by [[Russi Taylor]].
-* '''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. Accompanying them was the "Keep Your Eyes on Your Fries" [[jingle]]. Their name was later changed to the '''Fry Guys''', then the Fry Kids, as female characters (the "Fry Girls") were introduced. They are differently-colored, shaggy, ball-like creatures with long legs and no arms, almost resembling a [[pom-pon]] with legs and eyes. Most of the time they are [[muteness|mute]], but when they speak they talk in some sort of [[gibberish]]. In other commercials, they all talk very quickly at once. Their only facial features are bulbous eyes and thick, black [[eyebrow]]s. The characters were retained after the streamlining of the characters in the '80s.
+* '''Fry Kids''' - They 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. Accompanying them was the "Keep Your Eyes on Your Fries" [[jingle]]. Their name was later changed to the '''Fry Guys''', then the Fry Kids, as female characters (the "Fry Girls") were introduced. They are differently-colored, shaggy, ball-like creatures with long legs and no arms, almost resembling a [[pom-pon]] with legs and eyes. Most of the time they are [[muteness|mute]], but when they speak they talk in some sort of [[gibberish]]. In other commercials, they all talk very quickly at once. Their only facial features are bulbous eyes and thick, black [[eyebrow]]s. The characters were retained after the streamlining of the characters in the '80s.
-* '''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]]. He was based on [[H. R. Pufnstuf]]. The character was dropped during the streamlining of the characters in the 1980s, He did, however, appear in a 1999 McDonaldland [[VHS]] entitled "Have Time, Will Travel". Mayor McCheese was voiced by [[Howard Morris]] impersonating [[Ed Wynn]].
+* '''Mayor McCheese''' - 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]]. He was based on [[H.R. Pufnstuf]]. The character was dropped during the streamlining of the characters in the 1980s, He did, however, appear in a 1999 McDonaldland [[VHS]] entitled "Have Time, Will Travel". Mayor McCheese was voiced by [[Howard Morris]] impersonating [[Ed Wynn]].
 [[Image:Officer big mac playground.jpg|right|thumb|Officer Big Mac climb-in jail playground]]
-* '''Officer Big Mac''': In addition to [[McDonald's]] [[Big Mac|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 with a disproportionately small [[custodian helmet]] resting atop his head bun. As the main source of law and order in McDonaldland, Big Mac spent most of his time chasing the Hamburglar and Captain Crook. He was featured in several of the campaign's commercials throughout the late '70s and early '80s. The character was dropped during the streamlining of the characters in the '80s.
+* '''Officer Big Mac''' - In addition to [[McDonald's]] [[Big Mac|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 with a disproportionately small [[custodian helmet]] resting atop his head bun. As the main source of law and order in McDonaldland, Big Mac spent most of his time chasing the Hamburglar and Captain Crook. He was featured in several of the campaign's commercials throughout the late '70s and early '80s. The character was dropped during the streamlining of the characters in the '80s.
-* '''Captain Crook''' was a pirate and is similar in appearance to the famed [[Captain Hook]] from [[The Walt Disney Company|Disney]]'s 1953 movie ''[[Peter Pan (1953 film)|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. As part of the nautical theme of the character, Captain Crook used ships and [[waterways]] as means to escape being captured. In his final appearances, he was renamed simply "The Captain" and his character design made less sinister. The character was dropped during the streamlining of the characters in the '80s. Voiced by [[Lennie Weinrib]].
+* '''Captain Crook''' - Captain Crook was a pirate and is similar in appearance to the famed [[Captain Hook]] from [[The Walt Disney Company|Disney]]'s 1953 movie ''[[Peter Pan (1953 film)|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. He would often translate for Hamburglar. As part of the nautical theme of the character, Captain Crook used ships and [[waterways]] as means to escape being captured. In his final appearances, he was renamed simply "The Captain" and his character design made less sinister. The character was dropped during the streamlining of the characters in the '80s. Captain Crook was voiced by [[Lennie Weinrib]].
-* '''The Hamburger Patch''' is part of the [[fictional location|fictional city]] of McDonaldland where McDonald's hamburgers "grew" like [[fruit]] on [[plant]]s from the Hamburger Patch. Even though hamburgers in McDonaldland were [[anthropomorphism|anthropomorphized]] and spoke, they were picked by characters such as Ronald McDonald and the Hamburglar for consumption. Advertisements featuring the Hamburger Patch were shown as evidence during the [[McDonald's Restaurants v Morris & Steel|McLibel]] court case in the [[United Kingdom]]. During questioning by defendants, McDonald's Senior Vice President of Marketing [[David Green]] admitted that showing the reality of [[livestock#Animal rearing|meat production]] "would not be very appetizing". ''The Hamburger Patch'' also featured in books and toys used to promote McDonald's. The characters were dropped during the streamlining of the characters in the '80s.
+* '''The Hamburger Patch''' - The Hamburger Patch is part of the [[fictional location|fictional city]] of McDonaldland where McDonald's hamburgers "grew" like [[fruit]] on [[plant]]s from the Hamburger Patch. Even though hamburgers in McDonaldland were [[anthropomorphism|anthropomorphized]] and spoke, they were picked by characters such as Ronald McDonald and the Hamburglar for consumption. Advertisements featuring the Hamburger Patch were shown as evidence during the [[McDonald's Restaurants v Morris & Steel|McLibel]] court case in the [[United Kingdom]]. During questioning by defendants, McDonald's Senior Vice President of Marketing [[David Green]] admitted that showing the reality of [[livestock#Animal rearing|meat production]] "would not be very appetizing". ''The Hamburger Patch'' also featured in books and toys used to promote McDonald's. The characters were dropped during the streamlining of the characters in the '80s.
-* '''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. He would often appear when Ronald was dining with kids and would constantly crave food; he would never leave them alone until he got fed. Voiced by [[Jeff Lupetin]].
+* '''Iam Hungry''' - 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. He would often appear when Ronald was dining with kids and would constantly crave food; he would never leave them alone until he got fed. Iam Hungry was voiced by [[Jeff Lupetin]].
-* '''CosMc''' was a temporary character from McDonaldland. He was featured in a series of [[McDonald's advertising|McDonald's commercial]]s in 1990 when the McDonaldland gang went to the moon. CosMc was an alien who wore a large space suit, and he talked like a surfer dude. CosMc was featured as a character in the [[video game]], ''[[M.C. Kids]]''.
+* '''CosMc''' - A temporary character from McDonaldland. He was featured in a series of [[McDonald's advertising|McDonald's commercial]]s in 1990 when the McDonaldland gang went to the moon. CosMc was an alien who wore a large space suit, and he talked like a surfer dude. CosMc was featured as a character in the [[video game]], ''[[M.C. Kids]]''.
-* '''Griddler''' was a short-lived McDonaldland character. He was featured in 2 commercials in 2003 to promote the McGriddle by stealing them from Ronald and his friends.
+* '''Griddler''' - A short-lived McDonaldland character. He was featured in 2 commercials in 2003 to promote the McGriddle by stealing them from Ronald and his friends.
-* '''The Happy Meal Gang''' (Cheeseburger, soft drink, and fries, ''all regular size'') (later joined by the [[Chicken McNuggets#In popular media|McNugget Buddies]])
+* '''The Happy Meal Gang''' - A Cheeseburger, soft drink, and fries in ''regular size''. They were later joined by the [[Chicken McNuggets#In popular media|McNugget Buddies]].
-* '''The Professor''', a [[mad scientist]] type character in a [[lab coat]]. He was introduced in 1971. Voiced by [[Howard Morris]] in the 70's and by [[Andre Stojka]] in the 80's
+* '''The Professor''' - A [[mad scientist]] type character in a [[lab coat]]. He was introduced in 1971. The Professor was voiced by [[Howard Morris]] in the 70's and by [[Andre Stojka]] in the 80's
-* '''Uncle O'Grimacey''' was created for an advertising narrative of the [[McDonald's]] [[fast food restaurant]] chain both in celebration of [[Saint Patrick's Day]] and to mark the annual appearance of the [[Shamrock Shake]]. O'Grimacey is the [[Ireland|Irish]] uncle of the character Grimace and is a variant of the Grimace-design in that he is green instead of purple, sports a [[frock coat]] covered with several [[four-leaf clover]]s, and carries a [[shillelagh (club)|shillelagh]]. His design motif is not unlike that of a stereotypical depiction of the Irish folkloric [[leprechaun]], similar to the mascot of the [[Notre Dame Fighting Irish football|football team]] for [[University of Notre Dame]]. O'Grimacey resides in his home country for eleven months of the year and visits his nephew Grimace in March, bringing with him his "incredibly delicious" [[Milkshake#Fast-food and pre-made|shake]]. Uncle O'Grimacey is no longer used by the chain for its promotions of the shake.
+* '''Uncle O'Grimacey''' - He was created for an advertising narrative of the [[McDonald's]] [[fast food restaurant]] chain both in celebration of [[Saint Patrick's Day]] and to mark the annual appearance of the [[Shamrock Shake]]. O'Grimacey is the [[Ireland|Irish]] uncle of the character Grimace and is a variant of the Grimace-design in that he is green instead of purple, sports a [[frock coat]] covered with several [[four-leaf clover]]s, and carries a [[shillelagh (club)|shillelagh]]. His design motif is not unlike that of a stereotypical depiction of the Irish folkloric [[leprechaun]], similar to the mascot of the [[Notre Dame Fighting Irish football|football team]] for [[University of Notre Dame]]. O'Grimacey resides in his home country for eleven months of the year and visits his nephew Grimace in March, bringing with him his "incredibly delicious" [[Milkshake#Fast-food and pre-made|shake]]. Uncle O'Grimacey is no longer used by the chain for its promotions of the shake.
-* '''Mike the Microphone''' was a one-time character created for the [[Kid Rhino]] album ''Ronald McDonald presents Silly Sing Along''. He guards the door and runs things inside the McDonaldland Magical Radio Station, which Ronald and some kids use for their "Silly Day Broadcast". Mike was voiced by [[Larry Moran]].
+* '''Mike the Microphone''' - He was a one-time character created for the [[Kid Rhino]] album ''Ronald McDonald presents Silly Sing Along''. He guards the door and runs things inside the McDonaldland Magical Radio Station, which Ronald and some kids use for their "Silly Day Broadcast". Mike was voiced by [[Larry Moran]].
 ==Popular Culture==