McDonald's introduced the Hamburglar as a national advertising character in 1971. He became one of the recurring figures in McDonaldland, the fictional setting used in McDonald's marketing.
The character was designed around a playful hamburgers-and-mischief theme. His role was to try to steal hamburgers, giving commercials a simple comic conflict that children could understand. The early version was later redesigned, and the more familiar striped, caped appearance became especially associated with the character in subsequent advertising.
The Hamburglar is sometimes confused with Grimace or Ronald McDonald because all three appeared in McDonaldland campaigns. They were distinct characters with different roles: Ronald was the central mascot, Grimace was his large purple companion, and the Hamburglar was the mischievous burger thief.
McDonaldland helped McDonald's turn individual menu items and restaurant visits into a larger branded story world. The characters were used in commercials, promotions, toys, and restaurant materials, making them an important part of the chain's family-oriented identity in the 1970s and later decades.