The chef mascot with a hamburger-shaped head was called Speedee.
Speedee appeared in early McDonald's branding after the restaurant introduced its Speedee Service System. The name directly communicated the business's key promise: customers would receive food quickly through a streamlined counter-service operation.
The character's chef clothing linked him to food preparation, while his hamburger-shaped head connected the mascot to McDonald's main product. This combination made Speedee both a service symbol and a food symbol in a single graphic.
Speedee is sometimes confused with the later clown mascot Ronald McDonald. Ronald became the more prominent public face of the company during the 1960s, while Speedee belongs to McDonald's earlier branding era. The mascot also should not be mistaken for the Golden Arches, which developed from restaurant architecture into the company's principal visual logo.