Jim Schindler created the 1968 version of the McDonald's logo in which the arches formed a connected “M.”
Schindler worked on McDonald's graphic identity after the earlier arches had been adapted from the architecture of the restaurants. His 1968 design simplified the mark into a stronger, more unified symbol suitable for signs, packaging, and corporate applications.
The connected arches became especially important as McDonald's expanded beyond the visual context of its original buildings. A recognizable standalone mark could identify a restaurant, food package, or advertisement even when no full building façade was visible.
This fact is often mixed up with the earlier 1962 logo development. The 1962 mark is associated with the first simple overlapping-arches logo, while the 1968 version refined the arches into the familiar connected form. Both stages belong to the same broader evolution of the Golden Arches.