What name did McDonald's use for its fictional character who stole hamburgers?

McDonald's called its hamburger-stealing fictional character the Hamburglar.

The Hamburglar became part of McDonald's advertising world in the early 1970s. He was portrayed as a mischievous character whose central joke was trying to take hamburgers, especially from Ronald McDonald and the other McDonaldland figures.

His visual design changed over time. Early versions had a more exaggerated, adult-like appearance, while later versions were redesigned with a smaller, childlike look. The character's striped clothing, cape, and hamburger-themed identity made him easy to recognize in television commercials and promotional materials.

The Hamburglar is sometimes confused with Mayor McCheese or Grimace, two other McDonaldland characters. Unlike them, his defining role was the playful pursuit of hamburgers. McDonald's fictional character branding helped turn menu items into personalities and made the restaurant's advertising especially memorable to children.