The Hamburglar was the McDonald’s character known for wearing a striped outfit and trying to steal hamburgers.
The Hamburglar was created as part of McDonaldland, a fantasy world that gave McDonald’s advertising recurring characters and storylines. His name is a wordplay on “hamburger” and “burglar,” while his plots typically involved attempting to take hamburgers from the other characters.
His appearance changed substantially across the years. Earlier versions looked more like a small adult burglar, with dark clothing and a more mischievous or sinister expression. Later advertisements presented him as a childlike character in a striped costume, cape, and hat. These versions are all associated with the same branding character.
The Hamburglar is distinct from Speedee, McDonald’s early hamburger-headed mascot, and from Grimace, the purple McDonaldland character. His identity was built around comic food theft rather than restaurant speed or friendliness.