Dick McDonald
| Richard McDonald | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Richard James McDonald February 16, 1909 Manchester, New Hampshire, U.S. |
| Died | July 14, 1998 (aged 89) Bedford, New Hampshire, U.S. |
| Resting place | Mount Calvary Cemetery Manchester, New Hampshire, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Other names | Dick McDonald |
| Occupation | Entrepreneur |
| Known for | Original founder of McDonald's |
| Spouse(s) | Dorothy McDonald (m. ?–1998) (his death) |
| Maurice McDonald | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Maurice James McDonald November 26, 1902 Manchester, New Hampshire, U.S. |
| Died | December 11, 1971 (aged 69) Riverside, California, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Heart failure |
| Resting place |
Desert Memorial Park Cathedral City, California, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Other names | Mac McDonald |
| Occupation | Entrepreneur |
| Known for | Co-founder of McDonald's |
| Spouse(s) | Dorothy Carter (m. ?–1971) (his death) |
Brothers Richard James "Dick" McDonald (February 16, 1909 – July 14, 1998) and Maurice James "Mac" McDonald (November 26, 1902 – December 11, 1971) were American restaurateurs and entrepreneurs who developed and opened the first McDonald's restaurant in 1940. Their innovative concept and execution of a fast food stand has been highly influential in American cuisine, serving as the foundation for a global enterprise.
The McDonald brothers were born in Manchester, New Hampshire. Their parents were immigrants from Ireland. Their father worked as a shift manager in a New Hampshire shoe factory. In 1930, with the onset of the Great Depression, the elder McDonald was laid off after 42 years at the factory, and his sons decided to move to California to find work. The McDonald brothers worked odd jobs in the movie industry, including as stagehands at film studios and later operating their own movie theater, which quickly folded.
In 1937, the McDonald brothers opened a hot dog stand in Arcadia, California, inspired by a local hot dog stand that seemed to be the only profitable business in town, and which primarily served patrons at a local racetrack. However, the stand had few customers after racing season ended.
Maurice decided to open a bigger hot dog stand in nearby San Bernardino, a large working-class town with a population of approximately 100,000 people. After several banks declined to lend them the money needed for this venture, Bank of America finally approved, and in 1940, with $5,000 in capital, they opened a drive-in restaurant.
The new restaurant proved a surprise success and the brothers were soon making $40,000 a year. Most customers were either teenage boys and young males in their 20s who came there primarily to flirt with the carhop girls, or young working families looking for a cheap meal. The McDonald brothers decided that the latter were the ideal customer they wanted to attract.
After a couple years in business, the brothers began making plans to renovate their business model based on the lessons they had learned. One of these involved finding a more efficient way to service customers than the carhop girls, who were very slow, unreliable workers liable to flirt with customers. Another was that hamburgers accounted for a quite overwhelming amount of total sales, and that they were much cleaner and easier to assemble than barbecues and sandwiches.
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