The Hamburglar first appeared in 1971 as a masked McDonald's character who stole hamburgers.
The character was part of McDonaldland, the fictional setting used in McDonald's advertising during the 1970s. His name combined “hamburger” with the idea of a burglar, making his role immediately understandable to children.
The original Hamburglar looked substantially different from the later version most people remember. Early advertising portrayed him as a short, childlike figure with a more complicated costume and appearance. McDonald's redesigned him in 1985 into a taller, more streamlined character.
The Hamburglar was not the same character as Captain Crook, another McDonaldland figure associated with Filet-O-Fish sandwiches. He was also distinct from Ronald McDonald and Grimace, who had different roles in the advertising world.
The character illustrates how McDonald's used names, costumes, and simple repeated stories to make menu items memorable. His hamburger-stealing premise made the brand's core product part of the fictional action.