The Retro Blog

I’m not one of those people who’s terrified by clowns. I’m more indifferent. 1960’s Ronald McDonald, however, is enough to leave me cowering in the fetal position for a few hours. Not unlike Michael Jackson, he “likes to do everything everything boys and girls like to do.

Did he really have to have the hamburger tray hanging right in front of his crotch so that he had to point to it repeatedly?

This next ad is even more disturbing. My theory is that it wasn’t an ad for McDonald’s at all. NAMBLA probably put it out and notified its members to buy clown outfits and burgers immediately.

Here Ronald lets you know that you can get a Ronald doll so you can be close to him always:

These commercials are even creepier once you figure out who Ronald is. Yep, it’s Mr. Willard Scott of Today Show fame, who also claims to have invented the character. Willard played Bozo the Clown in the Washington D.C. area from 1959 to 1962. After Bozo went off the air he claims McDonald’s asked him to create a Bozo-like character to shill for their restaurants and Ronald was born. Thing is the duo of George Voorhis and Terry Teene (a rockabilly musician who appeared in Raging Bull) also claim to have invented the character. Considering how insane Willard Scott is I’m inclined to believe the latter, but we may never know the truth.