Mac Tonight appeared as a moon-faced lounge singer in McDonald's 1986 campaign.
The character was designed around nighttime dining and coffee promotion. His crescent-moon head, dark sunglasses, formal clothing, and lounge-singer presentation gave the campaign a markedly different tone from McDonald's colorful McDonaldland commercials.
Mac Tonight's advertisements featured a version of the jazz standard “Mack the Knife.” The musical association helped make the character memorable and reinforced the pun in his name. The campaign ran during a period when McDonald's was trying to encourage customers to visit later in the day.
This character is sometimes grouped with Ronald McDonald because both were major McDonald's mascots, but Mac Tonight was a separate campaign creation. He was not a member of the original McDonaldland cast.