🎄 Lace up your ice skates for a look at 3 classic holiday commercials starring 3 different iterations of McDonald’s clown in charge: “Happy Holidays” (the ice skating one), “Star Wish,” and “Runaway.”
🎙 Joey O. swoops in just in time to convince me not to leave home and run away to McDonaldland, which is honestly tempting.
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💬 Topics & Tangents:
Grape jelly is good on Sausage McMuffins. Try it.
McDonald’s Wiki, which exists, runs down all 7 versions of the ice skating commercial. Yes, there are 7, and they’re all on YouTube:
1982: the original, with King Moody as Ronald and the “You Deserve a Break Today” jingle variant.
1983: with the “McDonald’s and You” jingle variant.
1984: with the “It’s a Good Time for the Great Taste” jingle variant.
1986: with Squire Fridell as Ronald, the version I remember most.
1988: with Fridell and the original jingle.
1990: with Fridell and the “Food, Folks and Fun” jingle variant.
1991: with Jack Doepke as Ronald, bad lighting, and “The Wish that Changed Christmas.”
King Booker.
Squire Fridell as Ronald McDonald in “Mac and Me” and Paul Rudd’s ongoing prank on Conan O’Brien.
Grimace’s last appearance as of this recording was at Dodger Stadium, though as we know, nothing can kill the Grimace.
The “World’s Largest Entertainment McDonald’s” in Orlando, home to an animatronic Mac Tonight that hangs from the ceiling.
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“Happy Holidays,” “Star Wish,” and “Runaway” © McDonald’s.
Find us at adventcalendar.house.
🎙 Joey O. swoops in just in time to convince me not to leave home and run away to McDonaldland, which is honestly tempting.
****
💬 Topics & Tangents:
Grape jelly is good on Sausage McMuffins. Try it.
McDonald’s Wiki, which exists, runs down all 7 versions of the ice skating commercial. Yes, there are 7, and they’re all on YouTube:
1982: the original, with King Moody as Ronald and the “You Deserve a Break Today” jingle variant.
1983: with the “McDonald’s and You” jingle variant.
1984: with the “It’s a Good Time for the Great Taste” jingle variant.
1986: with Squire Fridell as Ronald, the version I remember most.
1988: with Fridell and the original jingle.
1990: with Fridell and the “Food, Folks and Fun” jingle variant.
1991: with Jack Doepke as Ronald, bad lighting, and “The Wish that Changed Christmas.”
King Booker.
Squire Fridell as Ronald McDonald in “Mac and Me” and Paul Rudd’s ongoing prank on Conan O’Brien.
Grimace’s last appearance as of this recording was at Dodger Stadium, though as we know, nothing can kill the Grimace.
The “World’s Largest Entertainment McDonald’s” in Orlando, home to an animatronic Mac Tonight that hangs from the ceiling.
****
“Happy Holidays,” “Star Wish,” and “Runaway” © McDonald’s.
Find us at adventcalendar.house.