Happy Meal
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A "Happy Meal" is a meal specially tailored for children, sold at the fast-food chain McDonald's since June 1979. A toy is typically included with the food, both of which are usually contained in a small box or paper bag with the McDonald's logo.
The Happy Meal was the brainchild of St. Louis, Missouri advertising manager Dick Brams, who in 1977 contracted Kansas City-based advertising firm Bernstein-Rein to develop a children's meal item that would promote McDonald's as a restaurant for families, specifically those with smaller children.[1]
The first Happy Meal in 1979 (a regular hamburger or cheeseburger, fries, McDonaldland Cookies sampler, and a soft drink) was the Circus Wagon Happy Meal. It cost one dollar and contained a McDoodler stencil, a puzzle book, a McWrist wallet, an ID bracelet and McDonaldland character erasers.[2]
Often the Happy Meal is themed to promote a current movie. The first such promotion was the Star Trek Meal, to promote Star Trek: The Motion Picture in December 1979.
Today Happy Meals consist of three parts:
- a small order of fries or Apple Dippers. Some locations also offer Ice Cream Sundaes or Ice Cream Cones.
- a child size soft drink of the customer's choice or chocolate milk or apple juice.
- a hamburger, cheeseburger, or four-piece order of Chicken McNuggets. Some locations also offer fishsticks or chicken wings.
In some locations the choices have been expanded to included a grilled cheese sandwich (known as a "Fry Kid") as one of the options.
In the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and other countries, McDonald's has recently introduced a "healthy option" to the Happy Meal - children can now choose to have milk or a fruit juice drink instead of a soft drink, and bags of dried fruit (or a whole piece of fruit such as an apple, or carrot sticks) in place of fries.
To make the trademark internationally recognizable, McDonald's now uses the term "Happy Meal" in all countries. There are some exceptions, such as in French Canada, where it is also called "Joyeux Festins" (meaning happy meals) but is called Happy Meal in France.
The Happy Meal did not introduce the practice of providing small toys to children. In Canada, the promotion prior to the Happy Meal was called the "Treat of the Week," where a different toy was available free on request each week; it continued after the Happy Meal was introduced.
Happy Meal toys have become increasingly elaborate in recent years. While initially they were little more than a cheap plastic trinket such as a frisbee or ball, they have since evolved into much more sophisticated toys, many of which are a tie-in to some existing toy line or contemporary motion picture. Past examples of recent Happy Meal toys have included Ty Beanie Babies, Neopets toys and a trading card, Mattel brands Barbie and Hotwheels, Hummers, and toys based on many Disney cartoons.
Initially buying the toy separately from the meal was discouraged, although this is now a fairly common and accepted practice, with "toy" now appearing on the menu.
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[edit] Selected menu items
The original Happy meal simply consisted of a hamburger or cheeseburger, twelve-ounce soft drink, McDonaldland Cookies and a small order of French fries. In recent years, however, other options have been added:
- Australia: Cheese & Tomato Toasted Sandwich, a side of sultanas and Apple Juice/Orange Juice/Mount Franklin Bottled Water, and 3 piece McNuggets. A new type of Happy Meal named 'Pasta Zoo' is to be launched in Australia in early January 2007. This Happy meal is believed to have Pasta, fries, 'Zoo Goo' sauce, a milk drink and animal toy. The box is also in the shape of an animal.
- Brazil: McFruit drinks, yogurt, MeltCheese Sandwich or 4 McNuggets Pack.
- Canada: Grilled cheese sandwiches, Apple Dippers, One-percent milk or chocolate milk, Apple or Orange Juice.
- France: Yogurt smoothies and flavored water.
- Hong Kong: Fresh Corn Cup, Hi-Calcium Mango Fruit Yogurt, Hi-Calcium Low Fat Milk/ Chocolate Milk, Orange Juice.
- Indonesia: Fried Chicken.
- Italy: Fruit cups.
- Japan: Fish McDippers.
- Mexico: Milk and orange juice.
- New Zealand: Fruit Juice, Bottled Mineral Water, Packet of Sliced Apples, Fresh Milk.
- Norway: Mini carrots.
- Romania: Dannon yogurt, apples, Nesquik cereal bars, and mini apricot pies.
- Spain: Kid-sized bottled mineral water and Dannon low-fat yogurt.
- United Kingdom: Organic milk.
- United States: One-percent milk or chocolate milk and Apple Dippers.
- A variety of fruit, chicken, and yogurt products in markets around the world.
- Philippines: Spaghetti.
[edit] International differences
The name of the meal differs internationally. In Japan, it was called Okosama Lunch from 1987 to 1988, then Okosama Set from 1988 to 1995 (Okosama is a polite word for "child"). It has been Happy Set ever since.
Toys differ. In Japan, unique toys were offered from 1987 to 1996.
In Spanish-speaking United States and Puerto Rico it is known as "Cajita Feliz" (Happy Little box in Spanish). In Spain, it is called "Happy Meal".
In Brazil is known as "Mc Lanche Feliz" (Mc Happy Snack in Portuguese), however in Portugal it's called "Happy Meal".
[edit] Other uses of "Happy Meal"
The term Happy Meal is also a name given to an Ethernet adapter used in Sun Microsystems machines. The interface name is shown as hme when one views the interfaces via the ifconfig command. See also Big Mac
[edit] Trivia
Happy Meals have been served to Guantanamo Bay prisoners as a reward for showing signs of good behavior.[3]
Others believe that the Happy Meal was in fact invented in Guatemala in the late 1970s by a female McDonalds Franchise Operator.
The 1997 'balancing dragons' Happy Meal toys series was withdrawn in the UK - despite having been released in other territories without any problem - after there was a public outcry about the bases of the toys resembling penises.
