A Look Back at McDonald’s Playland

Eesh, it’s been over ten days since I last updated. I blame the weather, and being under it.

Anyway, don’t want to leave you guys without something to look at, so here is a nice article from Retrojunk which looks back at some of what made McDonald’s fun when we were kids: The Playland, and McDonaldland gang.

Though only the latter for me; growing up in small towns in North Carolina, the local McDonald’s, as much as I would like them, did not have Playlands. That was strictly a “big city” thing, sort of like Toys R Us or the now-defunct Lionel Toy Warehouse.

Times have changed, though, and the McDonald’s I spent my formative years with renovated, adding a big honking indoor Playplace, well after I’d outgrown it. I’ve not stopped by there on my visits since to see if they sport the Nintendo consoles I’ve seen indoors around other McDonald’s, though.

And honestly? Where the playground equipment in this article is concerned, I don’t remember anything like that. It’s some pretty neat stuff.

Say what you want about McDonald’s, but I’ve fond memories of the place as a kid, and it’s something I hope I’m able to share with my kids someday. It almost seems like that whimsical, magical feeling the place had has diminished– it’s probably just me getting older, though it seems like the McD’s characters have less emphasis now. But then, I watch most of my cartoons and such through YouTube and the like, so I guess I really wouldn’t know.

Speaking of the characters, get a load of that old, old version of the Hamburglar; if that’s what Homer-as-Krusty was beating on in that one episode of The Simpsons, I might have been cheering him on.

…I do wish McDonald’s still had the Chocolaty Chip Cookies, though. Those were the kind my mom and I would always stop and get on the way home from somewhere. They should bring the Arch Deluxe back, too. If the McRib can make limited-time comebacks, why not the Arch?

–LBD “Nytetrayn”

David Oxford

David Oxford, or “LBD ‘Nytetrayn’,” as he is sometimes also known, is a freelance writer of many varied interests who resides in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. If you’re interested in hiring him, please drop him a line at david.oxford (at) nyteworks.net.

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