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| youtube |
I can't say I was massively impressed, even at that age... it was colourful and fun, and I was excited 'cos I was at a Birthday Party, and it was somewhere brand new where only a couple of us (20 or so children, who'd been invited) had been before, but I also found it a bit weird...
Like it was trying too hard to appeal to children and the burgers were tiny and rubbery, nothing like my mum made at home...
One thing I did discover was my love for root beer and anything flavoured with it, it's pretty elusive nowadays, especially in Wales, but if I can get my hands on it, I savour the rare treat!
Anyway, back in those days, a birthday at McDonalds meant accompanying McDonald things such as a plastic glove puppet of Ronald.
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| agonybooth.com |
A Frisbee with the clown spread-eagle in the centre... and even an appearance by the freaky bugger himself!
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| ebay |
The first McDonald's restaurant opened their doors in 1948, becoming a franchise in 1955, although at this time there was no Ronald McDonald - he wouldn't come into being until the early 1960's.
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| famousclowns.org |
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| tumbral.com |
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Over time, Ronald gained a huge group of friends who all lived in McDonaldLand with him, several of which were even freakier looking than the clown himself, but I digress.
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| mashed.com |
This eventually led to a line of toys, featuring the clown and his friends from McDonaldLand that were made by Remco Toys in the early to mid 1970's.
By 1976, Ronald McDonald, Big Mac, Mayor McCheese, Hamburglar, Captain Crook, The Professor and even Grimace had been made into 6 inch high figures which could be played with on their own or as part of the MacDonaldland Train Set.
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| popculture.mearsonlineauctions |
The train track had a decorated mat to rest on, with a folded side which when folded up forms a backdrop (11 inches high) both of which were decorated in the same style as the McDonaldLand Murals which used to adorn the walls of McDonald's Restaurants.
In some restaurants you may even see a huge fibreglass Apple Pie Tree which occasionally doubled up as a swing along side other playground equipment they often had at the time.
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| mentalfloss.com |
Another thing the box states is included is a stationary set, which is very kitsch and very cute but again, what has it got to do with anything else in the box...
If you'd like to see a picture of the stationary; click on the Mentalfloss link below the above picture and you'll be taken to a very interesting article about the train set as well as some legal bother McDonald's got into when they were sued by the creators of H.R PufnStuf who felt some of the McDonaldLand characters were a bit to close to their own creation, it's a fascinating read.
Hamburglar is in storage so I unfortunately can't show you him right now, he's missing his cape anyway, but my Ronald did come out with me on my birthday a couple of years back when Creeping Stink Flesh got her name and The Hujoo's and Pendle Makie went sunbathing in Langland Bay in Swansea, so here's a picture of him from that day...
As you can see he is in great condition, his outfit is in perfect condition and so his hair... you've probably also noticed that little round toggle thing in the middle of his back, it allows you to move his head up and down, side to side, do the scene from The Exorcist, etc
Here he is sans clothes, in a photo I lifted from another Ebay listing (for a nakie Ronald) while I was waiting for him to arrive.. as you can see his arms and legs are moulded in red plastic, his shoes are not removable as they are moulded onto his feet, his gloves are painted on and in terms of articulation, apart from the rotating head button, he is only able to move his limbs at the hips and shoulders, making him best suited for posing standing up.
The plastic he is made from is good quality so not likely to bend, warp or snap providing you don't go crazy, his hair is also good quality, rooted firmly to his head with no loose hairs that I've noticed, not bad for a doll which is now 43 years old!
Hugs,
