The chef mascot shown in McDonald's logo before Ronald McDonald was Speedee. Speedee was a small chef character associated with the McDonald brothers' early restaurant identity and the fast-service concept represented by the name “Speedee Service System.”
The character appeared in early McDonald's branding before Ronald McDonald became the company's best-known mascot. Speedee is often confused with later McDonaldland characters, but he belonged to an earlier stage of the company's visual identity.
Ronald McDonald was introduced in the early 1960s as McDonald's shifted toward a broader family-oriented advertising style. The transition did not make Speedee part of McDonaldland; the two characters belong to different periods of McDonald's branding history.