Uncle O'Grimacey And 4 Other McDonald's Characters We Bet You Never Knew Existed Slideshow

Uncle O’Grimacey and 4 Other McDonald’s Characters We Bet You Never Knew Existed

The McDonaldland characters, even though they haven't been seen in any McDonald's ads since 2003, hold a special place in the hearts of the millions who grew up eating McDonald's. You can most likely still rattle off a few of them from memory: Ronald (obviously), the Hamburglar, Grimace, Mayor McCheese... that's probably about it. But did you know that there were more than 20 McDonaldland characters in all?

Captain Crook

This pirate captain first appeared in 1970 as one of the original McDonaldland characters. He would steal Filet-O-Fish sandwiches and evade capture by escaping on his ship. While he was a major character in the '70s, in the '80s he transformed into the Muppet-like "The Captain" and was phased out by the mid-'80s.

CosMc

CosMc, an alien who word a space suit and talked like a surfer dude, appeared in a series of mid-'80s commercials. Voiced by legendary voiceover actor Frank Welker, his last appearance was in a 1999 spot where the McDonaldland gang went to the moon

Officer Big Mac

Oftentimes confused with Mayor Mayor McCheese — they both had burgers for heads — Officer Big Mac was identified by his constable uniform and small police helmet. Mostly occupied by chasing after the Hamburglar and Captain Crook, he was dropped in the mid-'80s. 

The Professor

This white-haired scientist in a lab coat and light-bulb-topped helmet was introduced in 1971 as the local inventor and became a major character in the 1980s. He was dropped in the mid-'80s, but he did appear in a 1993 Sega video game called McDonald's Treasure Land Adventure. 

Uncle O’Grimacey

The most awesomely named McDonaldland character in history, Uncle O'Grimacey appeared in commercials in 1977 and 1978 to mark the annual appearance of the Shamrock Shake. Grimace's Irish uncle looked just like his nephew, but he was green instead of purple, wore a clover-decorated waistcoat, and even carried a shillelagh.