A trading post for collectors of Happy Meal (and other fast food) toys. It was always about the toy.”. And that’s why it was successful.”. When I asked a McDonald’s media contact who created the Happy Meal, the first name mentioned was Yolanda Fernandez. She said she never asked Oak Brook executives for permission to create Ronald’s Menu, but in 1977, at a McDonald’s marketing conference in Chicago, she presented them with her idea. (Bernstein trademarked the Happy Meal name, though he later transferred it to McDonald’s for $1.) Just as the Happy Meal premiered nationally, Burger Chef sued McDonald's for ripping off its Fun Meals; later, McDonald's sued Burger King for ripping off Happy Meals to create Big Kids Meals. She added that the Happy Meal "created an incredibly valuable heritage in playfulness and fun.". And because McDonald’s finally recognized a need to rework its nutritional standards, there’s no cheeseburger option. He still keeps a bronze Happy Meal in his office, awarded by McDonald's in 1987 - the inscription thanks him for "for bringing the Happy Meal, a bold idea," to the company. While that might not exactly be true, 1977 did mark the first year that you could get a Happy Meal fr As early as 1973, the Indianapolis-based Burger Chef had been offering its own Fun Meals that included a toy. The first toys were tops, stencils, wallets, puzzles and erasers. Still, the majority of controversies centered on nutritional value. "But the boxes were worth more than the toys," said Mike Fountaine, a retired McDonald's franchise owner in Pennsylvania who amassed a 75,000-piece collection, including "90 per cent" of all Happy Meals. According to Meredith Williams, a Joplin, Missouri, collector of fast-food ephemera who wrote two guides to collecting Happy Meals, individual McDonald’s franchises around the country had tested similar concepts, from trick-or-treat packages and Mayor McCheese bags. The McDonald's Happy Meal® is a great, easy meal for kids -- including a Hamburger, Chicken McNuggets®, and more. Marketing plays a big part, as does variety, balance and having the right suppliers in place. There’s also a collector’s market for Happy Meal toys, reminding us of the value of nostalgia. The fires in a Happy Meal are smaller than a regular small fries. By some accounts, the earliest form of what we’ve come to know as the Happy Meal was developed by a Guatemalan franchiser named Yolanda Fernández de … At Time: "McDonald’s Just Introduced an Absolutely Terrifying New Happy Meal Mascot." Adman Bob Bernstein (1) pitched the Happy Meal concept after watching his son reading a cereal box. Joe Johnston, a Tulsa author and artist, was a Cleveland adman in the early 1970s. In the mid-1980s, Happy Meal toys actually started getting pretty decent. The ad executive even trademarked the Happy Meal name, then later transferred it to McDonald's for $1 (NZ $1.50). And it’s interesting, because (the Happy Meal) debuts in 1979, and between 1980 and 2000 is when obesity among children skyrockets. Jose Maria Cofino founded the first McDonald’s in Guatemala in 1974 (he died in 1995), and in 1977, Yolanda created a “Ronald’s Menu” for the restaurant. But no Happy Meal, and considering how much Happy Meals contribute to the identity of McDonald’s — the company says 25 percent of its business is from families, and the data firm Sense360 once figured that, for a select period of 2017, McDonald’s was selling 3.2 million Happy Meals a day, creating $10 million in revenue daily — it’s an odd oversight. But they couldn’t afford millions of toys.”. And it all adds value and makes that (Happy Meal) more important to a kid. The object itself is ephemeral. No toys. This would be the first and last time that a Happy Meal featured a disintegration. And it's interesting, because (the Happy Meal) debuts in 1979, and between 1980 and 2000 is when obesity among children skyrockets. Bernstein said he began hearing only recently about Yolanda. We toured the grounds and learned how hamburgers were made, we heard about the founder Ray Kroc, then assembled for a lunch of Happy Meals. And it all adds value and makes that (Happy Meal) more important to a kid. "I remember when the Happy Meal started," said Marion Nestle, a celebrated food policy advocate and professor of nutrition, food studies and public health at New York University. “But toys, we learned, were key. "But toys, we learned, were key. In 1974, Bernstein-Rein was hired by Sam Walton to do advertising for Walmart. At a meeting with franchise owners, Bernstein heard that “moms needed something simple to handle” and restaurant owners wanted to streamline the often chaotic ordering of kids’ food. Favorite this Trivia. Though both campaigns had a playful tone, “I preferred McDonaldland ads, because the Happy Meal ads were never as lighthearted. READ MORE: * Behold the Krispy Kreme Doughnut Burger, with all of your calories for one day * McDonald's replaces Happy Meal toy with Roald Dahl books * McDonald's to take cheeseburgers off Happy Meal menu. the Extra-Terrestrial, during the film's first re-release. But there’s an even larger existential question here: Go to the McDonald’s website and, among an extensive accounting of its milestones, there’s no Happy Meal. The Happy Meal was tested in four cities before being released nationally in 1979. In 2010, a California class-action lawsuit claimed McDonald's used toys to unfairly entice children into eating unhealthy foods (the lawsuit was later dismissed); in 2002, New York teenagers sued McDonald's, claiming Happy Meals contributed to their obesity. It's a portrait of far-flung creative people, recognising the need for the same thing at roughly the same time. In the late 1970s, I went on a field trip with my class to the kitchen of a McDonald's in Rhode Island. She packaged the whole thing on a tray — no box. ", Ask those who contributed to the early days of the Happy Meal if they feel any guilt about the Happy Meal, and generally they say that fast-food nutrition and marketing was less of a concern in 1979. He still keeps a bronze Happy Meal in his office, awarded by McDonald’s in 1987 — the inscription thanks him for “for bringing the Happy Meal, a bold idea,” to the company. He was curious as to why his son was always reading the same cereal box, flipping it from side to side. It contained a hamburger, small fries, small Coke, small sundae. Asked why the Happy Meal worked at all, Schrage, the retired McDonald’s executive, said it was all about adding value: “You are getting not a toy, but a Disney toy, advertised on television, maybe connected to a movie. No one at McDonald's was addressing it." In 1974, Bernstein-Rein was hired by Sam Walton to do advertising for Walmart. Yolanda Fernández de Cofiño and her husband created the “Ronald Menu” (hamburger, small fries, and Sunday) for their McDonalds restaurants in Guatemala. And yet, possibly, the Happy Meal has played a larger part in your everyday life than the space race, a music festival in upstate New York or the decline of Soviet communism. I needed an eraser shaped like Grimace. “But the boxes were worth more than the toys,” said Mike Fountaine, a retired McDonald’s franchise owner in Pennsylvania who amassed a 75,000-piece collection, including “90 percent” of all Happy Meals. Before McDonald’s agreed to make the Happy Meal a national product, Bernstein’s Happy Meals were being tested and advertised for a couple of years in Kansas City, Phoenix and Denver. The past decade has seen McDonald's introduce leaner versions, with apple slices and fewer fries per box; according to the Chicago-based company, more than 50 per cent of Happy Meal customers in the United States now request milk, juice or water instead of a soft drink. So I thought there should be a smaller meal, for a parent to order that a child could finish.". The Happy Meal was tested in four cities before being released nationally in 1979. He doesn’t doubt her — again, the idea was in the air — but he insists he invented the Happy Meal as we know it. He made a deal with Keebler for cookies; he hired children's book illustrators and graphic designers to work on a box. The "Menu Ronald" was invented to … (McDonaldland ads) were kind of fantasy stories with a hamburger, but Happy Meal (ads) were about making certain (that) kids understood all about a promotional tie-in.”. Controversies concerning the Happy Meal — food fights, frankly — were apparent from the start. Our regional ad manager in St. Louis, Dick Brams, was aware of this and thought it was a nifty idea and he contacted a guy in Kansas City named Bob Bernstein.” Of course, it’s more complicated than that: Bernstein, whose advertising firm handled McDonald’s restaurants in the Midwest and Southwest (and still does), had been working already on a kids meal. He made a deal with Keebler for cookies; he hired children’s book illustrators and graphic designers to work on a box. Because the first Happy Meals initially included “such chintzy toys,” Seidelman said the advertising took pains to avoiding revealing “the prizes.” But eventually, Barbie, Hot Wheels, Disney, Hello Kitty, Transformers — a Happy Meal became a vehicle for showcasing cultural franchises as shamelessly as any celebrity appearing on a late-night talk show. 40 years later, the answer is complicated. "The thing is, nobody here in Guatemala really knew McDonald's when we started," she told me in a phone interview, "so they didn't know what a Big Mac was. Of course, turning children into regulars at McDonald’s was the whole point. He is not impressed. She added little toys that she bought at a local market. During the summer of 1979, McDonald’s premiered the Happy Meal nationally. Collectors became friends with toy designers, traded Happy Meal prototypes. Like the creation of many cultural icons, when it comes to the invention of the Happy Meal, it appears there were a lot of cooks in the kitchen. When I asked a McDonald’s media contact who created the Happy Meal, the first name mentioned was Yolanda Fernandez. Kids have been munching on Happy Meals for 40 years. But the lesson is, you can't make everyone happy. The commercials were all over Saturday morning TV. Right now, there’s a “Toy Story 4” Happy Meal, and the toys inside are pretty sophisticated. Celebrating 40 years of the Happy Meal. And because they really didn’t understand the name of the sandwiches, you would see a boy trying to finish a Big Mac. In what year was the McDonald's Happy Meal created? It's also around then that the Federal Trade Commission is attempting to curb marketing to children, but Congress kills this and marketing (fast food on television to children) is left unregulated. And initially, meals included a hamburger or cheeseburger, fries, a soft drink and cookies. So, there you go - Bob Bernstein of Kansas City, inventor of the Happy Meal. Martin Hunter/Sunday Star Times. He also worked on the slapstick, surreal McDonaldland commercials of the 1970s that featured Ronald, Mayor McCheese and friends. According to Meredith Williams, a Joplin, Missouri, collector of fast-food ephemera who wrote two guides to collecting Happy Meals, individual McDonald's franchises around the country had tested similar concepts, from trick-or-treat packages and Mayor McCheese bags. No toys. Bob Bernstein and his team invented a better way for kids to enjoy McDonalds. The first boxes were circus wagons. Time well spent. So, there you go - Bob Bernstein of Kansas City, inventor of the Happy Meal. And so, by the early 1990s, there were so many Happy Meal toys, it fueled a McDonald’s Collectors Club, founded outside Toledo, Ohio, by Linda Gegorski a now-retied biology teacher and health inspector. (Burger Chef even had “Star Wars” boxes in 1978.) In the late 1970s, it helped to cement the parameters of what was permissible when fast-food restaurants marketed to children. Happy Meal Box Template Free Download. Who created the Happy Meal? There are notes on the birth of Egg McMuffins (1975), the opening of Hamburger University in Elk Grove, Ill. (1961); they recognize the (Canadian) creation of the McFlurry (1995), and the launch of all-day breakfast (2015). Depending who answers, the Happy Meal was about competition. Before 1977, you could only get Sad Meals from McDonald’s. Later, it became Exhibit A for nutritionists eager to identify the causes of childhood obesity; indeed, the healthier Happy Meals of today are a response (several decades late) to the criticisms of the Happy Meal from the early 1980s. Months earlier, when the Happy Meal debuted, I rode my bike to a McDonald’s 2 miles from home. McDonald’s has introduced a vegetarian Happy Meal to its UK menu for the first time in the company’s history to cater for the growing number of children and parents following meat-free diets. Meanwhile, tucked inside that nostalgia, we also see a cultural artifact that, for many children - especially Gen Xers - offered a first bit of autonomy, their own food. Meanwhile, tucked inside that nostalgia, we also see a cultural artifact that, for many children — especially Gen Xers — offered a first bit of autonomy, their own food. ", By the mid-70s, the idea of a children's meal box (with a prize) had been floating around the fast-food industry. She added little toys that she bought at a local market. So he began trademarking cups, plates, lids as "Happy Cups," "Happy Plates," etc. Christopher J. Bryan, an assistant professor of behavioral science at the University of Chicago — who recently co-authored a study to help kids avoid fast food — sees these changes as half-measures. That's right, in the mid-70s when Yolanda Fernández de Cofiño was operating various McDonalds in Guatemala, she invented what she dubbed the "Menu Ronald". "Not that, to a child, it's about food. Before McDonald's agreed to make the Happy Meal a national product, Bernstein's Happy Meals were being tested and advertised for a couple of years in Kansas City, Phoenix and Denver. Strategy. The fries are even smaller than a normal order of small fries. Just cardboard and plastic and some loose french fries. Indeed, in 1982, five years before Bernstein received his bronze Happy Meal for bringing the Happy Meal to fruition, the company gave Yolanda a silver Ronald McDonald statue, for developing the Happy Meal, as well as helping to grow the company’s standing among children; they also credit her with developing the idea of McDonald’s as a ready-made location for birthday parties. A collectors market grew. Happy Meals were a big deal in the late 70s. The kids would get a burger, a small fry, cookies and a small drink with their Happy Meal. The Happy Meal was introduced in 1979, more than 20 years after McDonald's was founded in 1955. The Happy Meal contains a main item typically a hamburger, cheeseburger, or small serving of Chicken McNuggets, a side item french fries, apple slices, or a salad in some areas, and a drink milk, juice, or a soft drink. Unfortunately for Burger Chef, its top competitor ultimately won out. Indeed, in 1982, five years before Bernstein received his bronze Happy Meal for bringing the Happy Meal to fruition, the company gave Yolanda a silver Ronald McDonald statue, for developing the Happy Meal, as well as helping to grow the company's standing among children; they also credit her with developing the idea of McDonald's as a ready-made location for birthday parties. At first those toys were underwhelming plastic shrugs. He is not impressed. Order today with Mobile Order & Pay! When I asked a McDonald's media contact who created the Happy Meal, the first name mentioned was Yolanda Fernandez. Today, Dick Brams is known as the "father of the Happy Meal." Today, if you Google "inventor of the Happy Meal," you are as likely to get Brams as Bernstein. Children have always been able to choos… Did you know that the first ever Happy Meal was created by a Latina? The past decade has seen McDonald’s introduce leaner versions, with apple slices and fewer fries per box; according to the Chicago-based company, more than 50 percent of Happy Meal customers in the United States now request milk, juice or water instead of a soft drink. But as McDonald’s partnered with companies like Disney and Mattel, the quality of the toys improved, and as the ads warned with any given promotion, kids had a “limited time” to collect ‘em all. He doesn't doubt her - again, the idea was in the air - but he insists he invented the Happy Meal as we know it. Kids were like, 'This sucks, I want crayons.' Kids have been munching on Happy Meals for 40 years. There was a feeling McDonald's was losing its connection to kids. There will be no CNN documentaries or coffee-table books that explore the meaning of the Happy Meal. (Curiously enough, the first Happy Meal movie promotion, six months after the Happy Meal debuted, was for the slow and cerebral “Star Trek: The Motion Picture.”). The commercials were all over Saturday morning TV. By the 30th anniversary of the Happy Meal in 2009, fast food chains told the FTC that they were spending $341 million on the toys in its kids meals, which was more than half the total they spent marketing to children. There was no place to sit. This template has been designed for food shops, food order websites, gift showcase and more. A 2009 touring exhibit of Happy Meal memorabilia, to mark its 30th anniversary, also identified Brams as "father of the Happy Meal." But no Happy Meal, and considering how much Happy Meals contribute to the identity of McDonald's - the company says 25 per cent of its business is from families, and the data firm Sense360 once figured that, for a select period of 2017, McDonald's was selling 3.2 million Happy Meals a day, creating US$10 million (NZ$15 million) in revenue daily - it's an odd oversight. Because the creation of the Happy Meal was somewhat nebulous. Our regional ad manager in St Louis, Dick Brams, was aware of this and thought it was a nifty idea and he contacted a guy in Kansas City named Bob Bernstein." He said: "I came up with the Happy Meal, in 1975, as I watched my son at the breakfast table reading his cereal box. The first toys were tops, stencils, wallets, puzzles and erasers. But how do we think about the 40th anniversary of the McDonald's Happy Meal? Families took food to their cars. Joe Johnston, a Tulsa author and artist, was a Cleveland adman in the early 1970s. 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