What the hell was Grimace?

[Drain Bead]

Okay--pretty much anyone who has a computer is going to be familiar with all the wonderful characters from McDonaldland. There's the lovable clown, Ronald McDonald, the Hamburglar, Mayor McCheese, the Fry Guys, and of course, the huggable purple...thing...Grimace.

Grimace basically looked like a giant bug-eyed purple gumdrop. Thing is, McDonalds never sold gumdrops. They sold hamburgers. They sold fries. They (indirectly) sold cheese. But no gumdrops.

What the hell is Grimace? What is the point of having a giant purple thing in McDonaldland when it ostensibly has nothing to do with anything that McDonalds sells?

[Primaflora]

When I worked at McDonalds as a teenager, I was told that Grimace was a thickshake.

A thickshake making a quick exit from a kid's mouth I presume.

[Minxsmom]

Here ya go Drainy. All you ever wanted to know (and more) about the Grimace.

http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/3223/grimace.html

Apparently, he was like the Hamburglar. But, instead of burgers, he stole shakes. Originally, he was a bad guy. But, now, according to this report, he is Ronald's "special friend". Hmmmm :D

[DrFidelius]

Back in the day, there was conflict in McDonaldland. The Hamburglar actually stole burgers from the burger patch, The captain used his full name (Captain Crook) and he tried to hijack Filet-o-Fish from the lake, and the "Fry-Guys were called "Gobblins" and they specialized in liberating french fries from their rightful owners.

The Evil Grimace's forte was, IIRC, shake related felonies. I believe that is why he is a rather amorphous character.

At some point something must have been added to the water in McDonaldland, or all the characters had that brain surgery perfected by Dr. Clark Savage that removed all anti-social tendencies. The world is a warmer and fuzzier place now, but something is missing.

(I have also noticed that there appears to be much more interdimentional leakage between the Mcverse and Earth Prime nowadays. Characters are able to interact much more freely with normal matter. I view this with concern.)

[Max Torque]

Originally posted by DrFidelius
....the "Fry-Guys" were called "Gobblins" and they specialized in liberating french fries from their rightful owners.

I think you've overlooked another of McD's relatively recent changes. The "Fry Guys" are now referred to as "Fry Friends". Guess some PC geek wanted a gender-neutral name for the little yarn-balls.

[Arjuna34]

This has been answered by Cecil. The Master on the subject:

http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a940429.html

Arjuna34

[Guinastasia]

Grimace was always my favorite!

[Lance Turbo]

"What the hell was Grimace?"

Did Grimace die?

[Sofa King]

And this of course leads straight to the sordid Puf'n'stuff v. McCheese affair, now lost to the sands of time, or more likely my poor use of the SDMB search tool.

I suspect Grimace was quietly escorted off of the premises of McDonaldland when it was discovered that he was created as a result of hallucinogen use. That explains the perma-grin, too.

[Arjuna34]

Originally posted by Sofa King
And this of course leads straight to the sordid Puf'n'stuff v. McCheese affair, now lost to the sands of time, or more likely my poor use of the SDMB search tool.


Here you go:
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/990827.html

Arjuna34

[Flymaster]

Originally posted by Max Torque
I think you've overlooked another of McD's relatively recent changes. The "Fry Guys" are now referred to as "Fry Friends". Guess some PC geek wanted a gender-neutral name for the little yarn-balls.

I thought they were the "Fry Kids"? And what ever happened to the McNuggets? They're never in the ads anymore.

[Wicked Blue]

I thought Grimace was a tastebud. I'm pretty sure that was a question in #SDtrivia. Am I out of my mind??
Rose

[tomndebb]

Am I out of my mind??

Shouldn't this be in its own thread?

[Jophiel]

Yeah, that's the #SDTrivia answer, but umm.. that means you're trusting the trivia bot to dispense accurate information ;)

[ExTank]

Those commercials scared me.

I hid under the stairs whenever they came on.

They still make me vaguely uneasy.

:mutters:'everybody loves a clown' my ass! :eek:

ExTank
"Mostly Harmless :wally"

[Munch]

What was Grimace?

Grimace was purple.

No, but what WAS he?

Purple.

Purple is a color. I want to know what sort of THING Grimace was.

Grimace was A purple.

::slowly shuffles out of room sideways, looks around, takes off::

[Diceman]

I thought they were the "Fry Kids"? And what ever happened to the McNuggets? They're never in the ads anymore.
The last time I saw the gang of little walking pom-pons in a commercial (which has got to be about two or three years ago by now) they were called the "Fry Kids." They seem to have been dropped. I haven't seem Captain Crook in quite a while either. I've seen the McNuggets in some hockey-themed commercials recently.

[Satan]

Speaking of the Hamburgler, why the hell can't they keep this guy in jail? I mean, it's obvious that he is not being rehabilitated here.

I say someone run for mayor with a tough-on-crime platform. Vote that lazy Mayor McCheese bum out of there...
__________________
Yer pal,
Satan (http://www.members.tripod.com/jmspoofe/sdmb/satan.jpg)

TIME ELAPSED SINCE I QUIT SMOKING:
Six months, one week, two days, 2 hours, 55 minutes and 44 seconds.
7684 cigarettes not smoked, saving $960.61.
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I slept with a moderator!

[wevets]

Evil. Pure, unadulterated evil.

[DoctorJ]

Grimace is a Hilltopper (http://wkusports.fansonly.com/school-bio/wky-school-bio.html).

Dr. J

[ignatzmouse]

As I read on a box of McDonaldland cookies some twenty years ago:

There's a special someone in McDonaldland who always has a shake in hand. He's big and purple and fuzzy and hey, let's hear it for Grimace - Hip! Hip! Hooray!

Yes, I am seeking medical attention

[Omar Little]

For those who have everything, you can get a 1978 Grimace doll (http://cgi.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=469689967) starting at $9.95! :)

[Aglarond]

Originally posted by Lance Turbo
Did Grimace die?

No. He evolved into Barney. Stupid evolution.

[malden]

ignatzmouse, I don't even wanna KNOW how/why you remember that literary gem about Grimace after twenty years. :)

flymaster-- the McNuggets RULE! I haven't seen an ad with them in a long time. They always seemed so happy to be dipped in barbecue sauce even though they must have known what was coming next...

[G.B.H. Hornswoggler]

There was an extensive earlier thread about the history of McDonald's cartoons (http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=310) in response to the Cecil column referenced above.

I don't have much to add, except to lament the staid, boring place that McDonaldland has become -- when it used to be filled with color and excitement.

Oh, and there's this Mayor McCheese (http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=15791) thread, which is also fun.

[Arnold Winkelried]

Originally posted by Drain Bead
Okay--pretty much anyone who has a computer is going to be familiar with all the wonderful characters from McDonaldland.

I'm sorry, but I cannot let this statement of Yankee cultural imperialism stand unchallenged. :mad: I personally know many people with computers who would have no idea who the characters in McDonald's american television advertisements are. And that's just the people I know personally. There are computers in other parts of the world besides North America. :p

[Chronos]

Isn't he the same sort of creature as Slider and the Phanatic? Not that that settles anything, of course...

[poohpah chalupa]

Okay, but why is he called "Grimace?"

Bunch of McDonald's executives sitting around a table:
"We need a name for our new shake character...when you think of our shakes, what word comes to mind?"
"Frosty?"
"Creamy?"

A lactate-intolerant vice president feels a pain in his gut and grimaces.

...and a legend is born?

[astro]

Originally posted by wevets
Evil. Pure, unadulterated evil.

Grimace is evil's extracted essence. Evil's evil twin. He's so evil he's good.

[poohpah chalupa]

...errr, that'd be lactose intolerant.
sheeessh.

[Guy Incognito]

Maybe they call him Grimace because of the facial expression you get when you drink your shake too fast. I know that whenever I get "brain freeze" from cold drinks it feels like something is trying to bore its way out of the back of my skull. The Grimace could be the physical representation of this phenomenon.

Yeah, that's some special friend you got there, Ronald...

[Drain Bead]

Yeah, Arnold, and there are McDonalds restaurants in other areas of the world as well. Hell, I've personally been to one in Rio de Janeiro. IIRC, it had the same fuzzy happy characters as all the others.

Yankee cultural imperialism my ass. Are there any developed countries that DON'T have at least one Mickey-D's these days?

[capacitor]

Grimace was the inspiration for Barney.

[Sister Vigilante]

That would make a great band name or Doper username.

[sqweels]

Let us not forget "Uncle O'Grimacey" the big green schmoo who always visited aroung St. Patrick's day and went nuts for those shamrock shakes (do they still make those?).

[Arnold Winkelried]

Originally posted by Drain Bead
Yeah, Arnold, and there are McDonalds restaurants in other areas of the world as well. Hell, I've personally been to one in Rio de Janeiro. IIRC, it had the same fuzzy happy characters as all the others.

Yankee cultural imperialism my ass. Are there any developed countries that DON'T have at least one Mickey-D's these days?

I hardly ever go to McDonald's, but the ones I see in Europe don't have Grimace plastered everywhere. I asked my brother in switzerland over the phone (who has two children that eat at McDonald's) and he had never heard of Grimace. So there.
An informal e-mail survey of people I know in Europe brought seven answers of people who had never heard of Grimace.
I believe my point stands.
And there are people even in non-developed countries that have computers. As a matter of fact I know a couple of people in Africa that have a computer. I'll ask them if they have any McDonald's food-serving places in their area, but I'm betting the answer will be no.

[iksova]

Grimace was the theme in many of my reoccuring nightmares as a kid. I swear he chased my through a multitude of dusty grocery stores, with that evil leer plastered on his face...
Not a pleasant memory, I can tell you that much.

NOW I'm still afraid of clowns... or anyone in a goofy costume.