Which 1962 McDonald's symbol turned two Golden Arches into a stylized letter M?

The 1962 Golden Arches logo turned two separate restaurant arches into a stylized letter M.

Jim Schindler created the graphic mark by combining the two yellow arches used in McDonald's building designs. The result was a simple, highly recognizable symbol that could appear on signs, packaging, advertisements, and other brand materials.

The symbol did not originate as a literal initial drawn from scratch. It evolved from the architecture of McDonald's restaurants, allowing the company's physical locations and its printed identity to reinforce one another.

This history is separate from the question of who created the modern M-shaped logo: here, the answer is the name of the symbol itself. The Golden Arches logo also differs from Speedee, the earlier mascot and service-system emblem that represented McDonald's before the arches became dominant.