McDonald's has certainly changed quite a bit since its humble California beginnings in
the 1950s, and a great deal of that change has happened just in the last decade or so.
They've removed many of their playgrounds, spent $6 billion on making their restaurants
more high-tech and sleeker-looking, and done everything under the sun to create a menu
that appeals to fast casual-loving millennials.
One of the more nostalgic aspects of McDonald's that's faded away has been the burger chain's
longstanding clown mascot - Ronald McDonald.
The absence of Ronald McDonald is bound to split people into two groups.
There are those who will view Ronald's firing from the McDonald's of today as yet another
piece of their childhood gone forever.
On the opposite side of the coin, are those with more of a "good riddance" attitude about
it.
So why, after so many years of promoting Happy Meals, did the Golden Arches finally pull
Ronald McDonald from its promotions?
Despite the friendly and fun good nature of Ronald McDonald, 2016 bought some bad press
to clowns everywhere that not even the almighty machine of McDonald's wanted to try and fix.
Perhaps you remember back in 2016 when there was a rash of really spooky clown sightings
across the United States.
"A clown just chased my daughter."
Clowns were reportedly chasing motorists with knives, lurking around schools, and otherwise
just being real creeps.
This wasn't simply something that was causing a stir on internet bulletin boards or Twitter
- major media outlets were reporting on rumors of terrorizing clowns.
The whole thing was widespread enough that McDonald's felt the need to officially distance
themselves from the worrying news.
Spokeswoman Terri Hickey said in a 2016 press statement,
"McDonald's and franchisees in the local markets are mindful of the current climate around
clown sightings in communities and as such are being thoughtful in respect to Ronald
McDonald's participation in community events for the time being."
While the creepy clown craze might have been the straw that broke the camel's back, it
was hardly the only reason McDonald's parted ways with their clown.
"McDonald's hamburgers?"
"Yeah!"
"And some French fries?"
"Yeah!"
Ronald McDonald has been McDonald's main mascot since the 1960s, but his presence was wearing
thin before those terrifying clown sightings of 2016.
Various watchdog groups had been criticizing Ronald's marketing of unhealthy fast food
to impressionable kids for years, drawing comparisons to the long-retired cigarette
mascot Joe Camel.
Long before the creepy clown incidents, former CEO Don Thompson attempted to defend Ronald
as a mascot, saying in 2014,
"You don't see Ronald McDonald in schools.
You don't see him eating food."
Basically, the message seemed to be that Ronald doesn't eat McDonald's food - he just sells
it.
Many observers thought the defense didn't do much to help Ronald as a mascot, or McDonald's
as a place to eat.
That same year, the company redesigned the clown with a cooler, more sophisticated look,
but whatever they were shooting for, the rollout was a flop.
McDonald's has been going through a makeover to make its restaurants more appealing to
adults for years.
The company started this makeover in 2012, and they're still in the process of updating
its 5,000-plus locations.
This means self-order kiosks, refreshed exteriors, and dining rooms that take inspiration from
cafes and coffee shops.
But the turn away from the kid-friendly burger joint design is a problem for Ronald, whose
loudly-dressed cardboard cutouts don't really fit in with the new modernized aesthetic.
McDonald's could always bring Ronald McDonald back whenever it likes, but these days, if
you look through the company's social media accounts you'll see that they're almost totally
Ronald-free.
This doesn't mean that Ronald McDonald has been 100 percent erased from the brand.
You can still see Ronald McDonald representing the Golden Arches at least one day out of
the year in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
McDonald's has been flying a giant Ronald McDonald balloon in the parade for years and
it continued to do so at the parade in 2019.
Ronald's parade appearance that year wasn't exactly smooth sailing, though.
Poor Ronald suffered a gash in his leg after being blown into a tree branch.
The deflation got so bad that NBC cut away to pre-recorded footage from an old parade
to save Ronald the embarrassment.
Check out one of our newest videos right here!
Plus, even more Mashed videos about your favorite fast food places are coming soon.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell so you don't miss a single one.