McDonald's original chef-hat-wearing mascot, introduced in 1948, was Speedee.
Speedee represented the restaurant's early Speedee Service System, which emphasized quick preparation and standardized food. The mascot was styled as a smiling chef and appeared in early McDonald's signs and promotional material.
Speedee was not the same character as the later Hamburglar or Ronald McDonald. Those figures belonged to McDonald's much larger 1960s and 1970s advertising worlds, while Speedee came from the company's earliest postwar branding.
The name also reflected a central business idea: McDonald's wanted customers to associate the restaurant with consistent, rapid service. The original mascot gradually disappeared as the Golden Arches and character-based advertising became more prominent.