The Big Mac inspired the name of McDonald’s 1968 hamburger mascot, Officer Big Mac.
Officer Big Mac was one of the characters created for McDonaldland advertising. He was depicted as a police officer whose head resembled the Big Mac sandwich. The character’s name directly connected the mascot to one of McDonald’s most important menu products.
The Big Mac itself was introduced nationally in 1968, making the timing significant for the brand. By giving the sandwich a character identity, McDonald’s could promote the product within the same imaginative world as Ronald McDonald, Grimace, and Mayor McCheese.
Officer Big Mac is sometimes confused with the Big Mac’s advertising imagery more generally. He was a named fictional mascot, not the sandwich’s inventor or a real employee. The character was later retired as McDonald’s moved away from its extensive McDonaldland cast.