Fans have been completely stunned after McDonald's put a decades-old mystery to bed by revealing the true identity of its famous character.
Brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald founded the fast-food chain in 1940 in San Bernardino, California, initially as a 'carhop' drive-in.
Over the course of the next decade, the brothers, taken under the wing of businessman, Ray Kroc, saw their burger joint snowball across the US, expanding to a franchise with their signature Golden Arches which are now seen in almost every corner of the world more than eight decades later.
In the 1960s, the franchise then introduced some family-friendly mascots, starting with the creation of the 'Hamburger-Happy Clown' Ronald McDonald that debuted in TV commercials, which saw at the peak of his popularity around 300 full-time cosplaying clowns employed at McDonald's restaurants.
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Not long after his appearance came the introduction of some pals - the Hamburglar, Birdie the Early Bird, the Fry Kids, the McNugget Buddies, the Happy Meal Gang and a seemingly unexplainable purple blob, called Grimace.
The purple mass was initially called 'Evil Grimace' in 1971 among the McDonaldland crew as he used his four arms to steal and carry milkshakes.
While his PR image shifted to a less-evil-looking companion of Ronald McDonald over the years, what has been lesser known is what Grimace actually is.
The fast-food chain has lifted the lid on the ancient pop-culture puzzle, revealing that he is in fact a huge, anthropomorphic taste bud, of all things.
Though it appears McDonald's wasn't so sure on its own 'Grimace lore', tweeting back in 2012 that he is 'the embodiment of a milkshake, though others still insist he's a taste bud', while other bosses referred to him as a 'blob of a sweetheart'.
However, the truth came out when a McDonald's manager in Windsor, Canada, casually dropped the bombshell in an interview with CBC News after celebrating being named Outstanding Manager of the Year.
Brian Bates said at the time: "He is an enormous taste bud, but a taste bud nonetheless," adding that Grimace's role is to show that McDonald's food tastes good.
Hilariously, Grimace's shift to a friendly and more cuddly-looking creature started when bosses realized he was too frightening for kids to like.
"The original Grimace was scaly, mean‑looking, had four arms, and had no charm whatsoever," McDonald's former vice‑president of advertising Roy T. Bergold Jr. wrote in QSR magazine.
"He scared kids. We changed him to a soft, plush, two-armed blob of a sweetheart who only wanted McDonald’s milkshakes and to hang out with Ronald."
Still, the revelation has absolutely blown the minds of McDonald's fans who have waited years to find out Grimace's origins.
When he 'took over' McDonald's socials in 2023 to announce his birthday celebrations, with limited edition purple shakes and merch, one fan wrote back: "Why is Grimace a taste bud and not a purple chicken nugget?"
Another bewildered fan said: "BTW why didn't you tell me in the 80s Grimace is a TASTEBUD?!"
McDonald's also commented on Grimace's apparent change of behavior, as a third asked: "And you're suuuure he's not still evil?" To which the restaurant wrote back: "He is a super chill guy now."
UNILAD has contacted McDonald's for comment.
Topics: Food and Drink, McDonalds, Nostalgia
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