Mac Tonight was McDonald’s moon-faced late-night mascot introduced in 1986.
Mac Tonight appeared in advertising designed to promote McDonald’s as an evening destination. The character had a crescent-moon head, wore formal evening clothing, and commonly appeared singing or playing a piano. His presentation gave McDonald’s nighttime advertising a lounge-style identity that differed from the daytime McDonaldland cast.
The character’s campaign is especially associated with a version of “Mack the Knife,” a song first recorded by Bobby Darin in a famous 1959 performance. The advertising used the song as part of Mac Tonight’s distinctive persona.
Mac Tonight is often confused with Ronald McDonald because both were McDonald’s promotional characters, but they served different campaigns. Mac Tonight was specifically tied to evening dining and appeared during a limited period beginning in the 1980s.