Issue 10
Mascots
By Joe SeagravesIllustration By Kristel Brinshot
Fast food mascots have become an enduring part of our cultural landscape. They are the byproducts of a consumer culture that is drawn inexplicably toward novelty. By bridging the distance between the consumer and the company, mascots have the ability to make real and lasting connections with people—something a burger could never do.
Bob’s Big Boy
Bob’s Big Boy’s corporate website says that its mascot was the result of a chance encounter between the company founder, Bob Wilan and a portly six-year-old patron named Richard Woodruff. The young customer walked into his local diner and instantly caught the attention of Wilan, who was looking for a catchy name for his new and improved double decker burger. When Wilan saw the boy, he yelled out, “Hello, big boy!” The name stuck, and Bob’s Big Boy was born. The drawing of the big boned, apple-cheeked mascot in checkered overalls came from a sketch a customer drew and disregarded on a napkin.
Dinky
In September 1997, the Taco Bell Chihuahua known as Dinky made his debut in a commercial and became an instant favorite for fast food junkies and dog lovers alike. But Dinky was mired in controversy. In 1998 two men, Joseph Shields and Tom Rink sued Taco Bell for stealing their idea of a talking Chihuahua. They won their $30.1 million lawsuit—plus $11.8 million in interest—in 2003. Charges of racism and ethnic stereotyping hounded the tiny mascot. The League of United Latin American Citizens called for a Taco Bell boycott, and in late 2003, Dinky the Chihuahua was officially retired.
Jack
At just under seven feet and weighing in at a buck 95, Jack the Jack in the Box mascot makes Ken Lay and Donald Trump look like a pair of marshmallow eating, tent pitching boy scouts. He was killed off in 1980 to give way for an ill-advised, cutting-edge ad strategy. But he made his triumphant return in 1994 with the “Jack’s Back” campaign, which continues to this day. AdWeek called Jack the company’s “secret weapon.” With a half-billion people served annually, Jack, with the help of his wife Cricket and son Jack Jr., has helped earn about $2.8 billion in annual revenue for the fast food giant.
Ronald McDonald
With flaming red hair, size 14 shoes and a glove full of burgers, Ronald McDonald has been joking his way into the hearts and wallets of fast food fans for 44 years. He is the face of a corporate empire with 13,712 stores embedded in 118 different countries. McDonald’s customer service representative Natasha Aei says the clown has appeared in over 2,000 television commercials in 25 different languages. Two people have publicly held the title of “Ronald McDonald”: Willard Scott and George Vidal. Scott, who was forced to retire when it became known that he was gay, introduced the clown in a 1963 television ad. Vidal, who is now a vegan and an animal rights activist, played Ronald during his national debut in the 1977 Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade.