Jasmyne, Perez
City Tech College
Fall 2019
Professor: Thelma Bauer
Research Paper

McDonal Logo History

Over the years the marketing systems have become smarter on how they sell their products. Promoting their services or products with logos. With eye catching logos many people from all over the world know they signify. This research paper will explain the history of the Mcdonald’s logo. This research paper will also explain the success of the McDonal trademark, the start of the creation of the logo, and the changes the logo went through, to now in the present time.

Before the McDonald logo was created, the McDonald brothers ventured off to the entertainment industry, in hopes of a better life after their father was laid off without pension. The brothers were born into a poor family. The entertainment industry did not work out so well for the brothers, only getting twenty five dollars weekly. The brothers saved up what they could and bought a 750 seat theater, opened a snack bar. However not everything bend to the will of the brothers because of the great depression. The brothers were always late to pay their bills and even buried some silver, “in case the bank foreclose on their theater”. After this the brothers decided to close “The Beacon”, they decided to try the food business.

Long before the golden arches as we know them today, McDonald’s was named McDonald’s Barbeque, a food stand. Their first opening was at San Bernardino. Brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald soon found out their top seller was burgers, they then closed down their store to perfect “the art of fast food”. Their first ever logo started in 1948, they named their service the ‘Speedee Service System’.

The brothers created a winking chef with a sign that states “custom built hamburgers” to promote the start of their service. “The double golden arches were not the original of McDonalds”. Ricard then hired an architect “ Stanley Meston” to design a “neon-trimmed golden arches”. This was the start of The McDonald’s logo.

However this eye catching design worked up until 1962, then came the time where the brothers sold out to Kroc. The first change to the McDonald’s logo was the speedee chef. Another artist that had a help in the McDonald’s logo was design consultant Louis Cheskin. Louis then created the double “M” we all know today, however the original idea of the golden arches was by Richard McDonald. While the first “franchised unit of McDonalds was designed by Stanley Clark Meston”. Ray Kroc then incorporated the arches to turn into the letter M, with the help of Fred turner and Jim Schindler. Ray Kroc was the influence to push the double arch into the McDonald’s logo.

History of the McDonald’s logo.

The font used for the McDonald’s logo was McLawsuit. The font created by Jesse Burgheimer with 99 characters. The reason for this is because of “the simplicity of the fonts that make the name McDonald’s look appealing to the eyes”. The colors used was also a smart marketing decision, the colors used were red and yellow. Red triggers stimulation, appetite, hunger, and attracts attention. Yellow triggers the feeling of happiness and friendliness. The colors are also bright which will help the customers see from a distance.

Not only is this logo universally well known, but it has impacted the pop culture. McDonalds has “redefined the concept of dining out, from fast service food to affordable fast and a delicious meal. Mcdonald has changed the views of society and the way people eat, with creating food items like the Big Mac, McGriddles, and a Happy meal. The branding was the first step that led other food industries to come up with their own brands and leave their mark as well.

In conclusion,the success of McDonald’s logo has been a long history. There have been many people who had a part in the success. However the original creators were the McDonald brothers. Kcroc only bought the business from the brothers because he saw the potential it held.

References and Citations
“The story behind the McDonald logo, Julia Sagar CB Creative Bloq”, Art and Design Inpiration, November 19, 2013 https://www.creativebloq.com/logo-design/mcdonalds-logo-short-11135325

“History Of The McDonald’s Logo Design”, Inkbot Design, April 12,2018
https://medium.com/@inkbotdesign/history-of-the-mcdonalds-logo-design-abb29ef78741

“The Origins of McDonald’s Golden Arches”, Alan Hess Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, Journal article, March 1986
https://www.jstor.org/stable/990129?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents

“The tragic real-life story of the McDonald brothers”,JOEL STICE, https://www.mashed.com/147897/the-tragic-real-life-story-of-the-mcdonald-brothers/

“The surprising reason why the McDonald’s sign is red and yellow” ,Jessica Brown,
September 14, 2017 https://www.indy100.com/article/mcdonalds-brand-signs-yellow-red-psychology-calming-hungry-7944036