McDonaldland was the fictional advertising world featuring Ronald McDonald, Grimace, and the Hamburglar.
McDonald’s developed the setting during the 1970s as a way to connect its restaurant brand with children’s television-style storytelling. The campaign included a colorful landscape populated by characters based on McDonald’s products, restaurant items, and playful fantasy figures.
Other McDonaldland characters included Mayor McCheese, Birdie the Early Bird, Captain Crook, and the Fry Kids. The characters appeared in television commercials, promotions, toys, and restaurant materials. Their shared setting gave McDonald’s advertising a recognizable narrative universe.
McDonaldland is sometimes used as if it were the name of a restaurant or a menu. It was instead a branding and advertising concept. Its prominence declined as McDonald’s advertising strategy changed, although several characters remained recognizable parts of the company’s history.