Which McDonald’s character became the chain’s fictional mayor in 1971?

Mayor McCheese became the fictional mayor of McDonaldland in 1971.

The character had a large cheeseburger-shaped head, a mayoral sash, and a formal civic role within McDonald’s advertising world. He appeared alongside Ronald McDonald and other McDonaldland characters in commercials and promotional material aimed largely at children.

Mayor McCheese is sometimes confused with Officer Big Mac, another McDonaldland character whose role was connected to law enforcement. The two characters belonged to the same fictional setting but had different identities and jobs.

McDonaldland helped McDonald’s turn its advertising into a shared story world. Its characters gave the company a recognizable cast beyond the restaurant’s logo, packaging, and menu items, although many of those characters were later used less prominently.