McDonaldland is a fictional place used in marketing for McDonalds to young audiences. It is a fictional country where Ronald McDonald and all of his friends live. As well as being used in advertising, the characters were used as the basis for equipment in the playgrounds attached to some McDonald's.

Cycle one of McDonaldland began in 1972, about the same time McDonald's was replacing its drive-ins with mansard-roofed restaurants. These early commericals were built on an upbeat, bubble-gum style tune, and featured a narrator, and plots that involved various villians trying to steal a corresponding food item, foiled by Ronald.

McDonald's had originally hoped Sid and Marty Krofft, the creators of the popular H. R. Pufnstuf program, would agree to license their characters for commerical promotions. When the Kroffts declined, McDonaldland was created, purposely based on the H. R. Pufnstuf show in an attempt to duplicate the appeal.

In 1973 the Krofts successfully sued McDonald's who argued the entire McDonaldland premise was essentially a rip-off of their television show. McDonald's was forced to pay a $50,000 settlement.

The original McDonaldland characters

• Ronald McDonald
• Grimace (originally Evil Grimace)
• Hamburglar
• The Fry Kids (originally Goblins)
• Mayor McCheese
• The Professor
• Big Mac
• Captain Crook
• The Hamburger Patch

During the 80's and 90's the cast was streamlined to the following:

Core characters

• Ronald McDonald
• Grimace
• Hamburglar
• Birdie the Early Bird
• The Fry Kids
• The Happy Meal Gang (Cheeseburger, soft drink, and fries, all regular size) (later joined by the McNugget Buddies)

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

See also: Burger King Kingdom

External links

• The lawsuit