Mac Tonight was McDonald's 1980s advertising character who sang a Moon-themed version of “Mack the Knife.”
McDonald's introduced Mac Tonight in 1986 as a character aimed at promoting evening dining. He wore dark sunglasses, had a crescent-moon head, and performed a rewritten version of the song “Mack the Knife.” The campaign gave McDonald's a distinctive nighttime identity at a period when the company was emphasizing dinner visits.
Mac Tonight is sometimes mistaken for a permanent McDonald's mascot like Ronald McDonald. In reality, he was primarily a campaign character associated with a specific advertising period. The campaign became especially memorable because of its unusual visual design and musical hook.
The character's name was a pun on “Mac” and “tonight,” directly reinforcing the campaign's evening message. His branding role was therefore different from the family and food characters used across many McDonald's promotions.