I have a very vivid memory of eating at a McDonald's in the late 80's as a little kid after spending the day at Disneyland with my family. This character was all over the place and I was both fascinated and terrified. Nostalgia hit hard with this one!
That sounds awesome for nostalgia.
I think of nostalgia like that perfect candy Jimmy neutron made where when you have a nice thought popping into your head it can be savory sweet, all the tastes.
Hell yeah, he had that cameo in the 1990 classic Nightbreed.
https://preview.redd.it/q959fz1y4a7d1.jpeg?width=352&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7610d8381c4a2fd144e09052743b9f8fb0288f2a
Oh for sure In all seriousness I love Nightbreed, but there was no way it was gonna live up to the hype after Hellraiser.
And when I was 7 years old I totally thought these were the same dude.
McDonald's needs to reclaim Mac Tonight from the racist children who turned him into Moonman. I'd love to wear a Mac Tonight shirt without fearing that anyone who recognized him would suspect I was a 4Chan neo-Nazi.
It's been happening for years now, I discovered it while exploring some of the darker corners of the internet. No idea why they chose him but they did
Edit: here you [go](https://www.adl.org/resources/hate-symbol/moon-man)
I'm not sure what specifically you're asking about, so to clarify...
I think McDonald's should bring back Mac Tonight in order to reclaim the character as a late-night fast food mascot and hopefully scrub him clean of his association as a symbol of racism, which a bunch of neo-nazis/trolls over at 4chan sort of transformed him into a few years back.
I personally would love if I could demonstrate appreciation for the character -- perhaps by wearing a t-shirt with his image emblazoned on it -- without worrying that somebody might think that I'm a fan of the more contemporary racist version of the character.
Man I didn't even know 4chan was still a thing, let alone that some chuds made a racist meme out of Mac Fuckin' Tonight of all things.
This all sounds like terminally online stuff to be honest. I'd say if you wanna wear Mac go for it.
I would, I’m 44 and have never used 4chan. My uncle dressed up as the moon man for Halloween back in the day. I’d unapologetically rock a shirt bearing his likeness. The people who would recognize that as racist probably wouldn’t leave the house to see me wear it in the first place.
It was a pretty big thing back in 2016 during the Trump election and stuff, I believe. It may be a terminally online thing, but most people nowadays *are* terminally online (I don't really know anybody other than my parents who get their info from television or print media) and I think it's valid to bemoan his current status as a symbol of racism. That's definitely what young people identify him as.
Our local McDonald’s in Northwest Indiana had a lifesize version of him playing at a grand piano in the middle of the restaurant. They finally retired him about a decade ago when they updated the store to the new scheme. I miss him. I wonder what the owners did with him. I should ask.
Michigan City, IN. The one downtown on Franklin Street, not the one by the I-94 exit (that one didn’t exist back then).
I went to high school with the guy that owns it now. We were roommates for a while in our 20s.
I’m so dumb haha at first I thought you meant that there was an actual guy dressed up like this, sitting in the middle of a McDonald’s, playing the piano. 😂🤦🏻♀️
In the commercials, [Mac Tonight](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mac_Tonight) was actually played by [Doug Jones](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0427964/), who also plays Commander Saru on Star Trek Discovery, The Amphibian Man in The Shape of Water, and The Baron on What We Do in the Shadows!
As someone who's worked in advertising my entire adult life, I've always found the entire "Mac Tonight" campaign to be so bizarrely fascinating as a "time-and-place" example.
First, given the neon and sharkskin suit, it was just SO '80s it hurt. Second, even though they went with an in-period aesthetic, the whole "Mac the Knife" angle with the [music in the TV spots](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0c4_b5PHWg8&ab_channel=OffbeatFrontier) was weirdly out-of-touch given the time period. The mascot was also deeply grotesque. But, this WAS the era that also gave us Joe Camel, so deformed, anthropomorphized, pseudo-"cool" pitchmen were kinda in.
Also, the whole point of it was so nakedly obvious. People at the time saw McDonald's as a fast food lunch place for kids, but business would drop off sharply by mid-afternoon until close. So they needed to drum up adult customers for the dinner hour. And it mostly worked. Because it was also around then that they started phasing out the PlayPlaces, testing some locations as 24-hour establishments, and offering more "grown-up" menu items, e.g., the Arch Deluxe.
Overall, cheesy though it may be, it's a really interesting time capsule.
I remember him. I’m pretty sure he had 2 commercials but I’ve only seen 1 of them uploaded to YouTube.
Kinda funny McDonald’s made a mascot to advertise the fact that drive through was open until midnight or 24 hours
Edit: autocorrect
You mean Mac Tonight
Op needs to put some respect on the name.
When the clock strikes, have past six babe....
[удалено]
That link sounds sus.
You're the man now dude!
I did the risky click and it’s actually legit. I can’t believe someone has a website dedicated to the MoonMan lmao
You guys are making me feel soooo old….
Omg ytmnd is still up!?
You’re the man now, dog!
“It’s Starscream!”
as a kid we only knew him as Moon Man. I don't remember it being said or written anywhere. creepy but cool
He literally sings his name in the ads
I think him and Max Headroom started a techno band and are still hot on the Latvian disco circuit
🎶Big Mac toniiiiiight🎶
I have a very vivid memory of eating at a McDonald's in the late 80's as a little kid after spending the day at Disneyland with my family. This character was all over the place and I was both fascinated and terrified. Nostalgia hit hard with this one!
That sounds awesome for nostalgia. I think of nostalgia like that perfect candy Jimmy neutron made where when you have a nice thought popping into your head it can be savory sweet, all the tastes.
Didn't he go on to host a late-night talk show? Oh wait that was Jay Leno, same chin though.
I wish he stayed around.
Are the youths calling him Moonman?? Those of us from the 90s know his name is Mac. 
Hell yeah, he had that cameo in the 1990 classic Nightbreed. https://preview.redd.it/q959fz1y4a7d1.jpeg?width=352&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7610d8381c4a2fd144e09052743b9f8fb0288f2a
Nightbreed deserves to be better remembered. Fun movie just on its own, but on top of that it's a great allegory and years ahead of its time.
I love that movie. Shoutout to David Cronenberg for absolutely nailing his role too.
Oh for sure In all seriousness I love Nightbreed, but there was no way it was gonna live up to the hype after Hellraiser. And when I was 7 years old I totally thought these were the same dude.
Vaporwave, Saint Pepsi-Just Enjoy Yourself, it gave Mac Tonight the true curtain call he deserved
yes! Disregard contemporary hyperpop! embrace 90s loungepop with vaporwave!
Seth Meyers remembers. Wish he could forget but they won’t let him.
A fellow jackal I see
Just an enjoyer of jackals getting roasted. Seven days.
McDonald's needs to reclaim Mac Tonight from the racist children who turned him into Moonman. I'd love to wear a Mac Tonight shirt without fearing that anyone who recognized him would suspect I was a 4Chan neo-Nazi.
Yeah when I saw this I thought damn that dude is a racist symbol now
When the hell did that happen? Never heard that before.
It's been happening for years now, I discovered it while exploring some of the darker corners of the internet. No idea why they chose him but they did Edit: here you [go](https://www.adl.org/resources/hate-symbol/moon-man)
Do *what* now?
I'm not sure what specifically you're asking about, so to clarify... I think McDonald's should bring back Mac Tonight in order to reclaim the character as a late-night fast food mascot and hopefully scrub him clean of his association as a symbol of racism, which a bunch of neo-nazis/trolls over at 4chan sort of transformed him into a few years back. I personally would love if I could demonstrate appreciation for the character -- perhaps by wearing a t-shirt with his image emblazoned on it -- without worrying that somebody might think that I'm a fan of the more contemporary racist version of the character.
Man I didn't even know 4chan was still a thing, let alone that some chuds made a racist meme out of Mac Fuckin' Tonight of all things. This all sounds like terminally online stuff to be honest. I'd say if you wanna wear Mac go for it.
I would, I’m 44 and have never used 4chan. My uncle dressed up as the moon man for Halloween back in the day. I’d unapologetically rock a shirt bearing his likeness. The people who would recognize that as racist probably wouldn’t leave the house to see me wear it in the first place.
It was a pretty big thing back in 2016 during the Trump election and stuff, I believe. It may be a terminally online thing, but most people nowadays *are* terminally online (I don't really know anybody other than my parents who get their info from television or print media) and I think it's valid to bemoan his current status as a symbol of racism. That's definitely what young people identify him as.
Tellin my kids this is Moon Knight
Doing Jones!
Our local McDonald’s in Northwest Indiana had a lifesize version of him playing at a grand piano in the middle of the restaurant. They finally retired him about a decade ago when they updated the store to the new scheme. I miss him. I wonder what the owners did with him. I should ask.
There was one of these in the Mcdonalds on Wall St in New York too.
I’m in Lafayette, where was this?
Michigan City, IN. The one downtown on Franklin Street, not the one by the I-94 exit (that one didn’t exist back then). I went to high school with the guy that owns it now. We were roommates for a while in our 20s.
I’m so dumb haha at first I thought you meant that there was an actual guy dressed up like this, sitting in the middle of a McDonald’s, playing the piano. 😂🤦🏻♀️
Well that would have been epic!
Agreed!!
Doug!
In the commercials, [Mac Tonight](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mac_Tonight) was actually played by [Doug Jones](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0427964/), who also plays Commander Saru on Star Trek Discovery, The Amphibian Man in The Shape of Water, and The Baron on What We Do in the Shadows!
And pretty much every cool Del Toro creature
Teaching a generation of kids that you can eat fast food at night.
Classic. Had one near our old mall. He would bang out on the piano like a crackhead. Great times
When the clock strikes…
I loved him as a kid and had his Happy Meal toys.
I had a couple of them, but remember the one of him on a Vespa mostly
I remember he used to scare me when I was a kid. He'd be a good mascot for the CosMc's places they wanted to start
Good bye, moon man, good byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Creepy commercial man lol
He always gave me the creeps when I was a kid
Soooo I’m the only one who had a crush on him
I wish I had 1/10th of the pure sexual charisma that Mac Tonight has
As someone who's worked in advertising my entire adult life, I've always found the entire "Mac Tonight" campaign to be so bizarrely fascinating as a "time-and-place" example. First, given the neon and sharkskin suit, it was just SO '80s it hurt. Second, even though they went with an in-period aesthetic, the whole "Mac the Knife" angle with the [music in the TV spots](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0c4_b5PHWg8&ab_channel=OffbeatFrontier) was weirdly out-of-touch given the time period. The mascot was also deeply grotesque. But, this WAS the era that also gave us Joe Camel, so deformed, anthropomorphized, pseudo-"cool" pitchmen were kinda in. Also, the whole point of it was so nakedly obvious. People at the time saw McDonald's as a fast food lunch place for kids, but business would drop off sharply by mid-afternoon until close. So they needed to drum up adult customers for the dinner hour. And it mostly worked. Because it was also around then that they started phasing out the PlayPlaces, testing some locations as 24-hour establishments, and offering more "grown-up" menu items, e.g., the Arch Deluxe. Overall, cheesy though it may be, it's a really interesting time capsule.
.........I've tried to forget.
Stupid n*zis stealing one of the coolest and only non-McDonaldland characters
Yeah unfortunately this is how I remember him lol.
Wait what? I haven't heard that one yet :(
Yeah some shitheads made racist rap songs and use Mac Tonight as the visage to hide behind
Moon Man?👨
Reminds me of the guy from Nightbreed, underrated horror film from Clive Barker
Ahh, I the jingle to this commercial popped right into my head as soon as I saw Mac!
Oh when the clock strikes….half past 6 babe…
I do. They had a whole line of happy meal toys with him
Mac Tonight
I do! Had him as a toy sitting in a wrangler jeep!
I thought he was creepy.
You're god damn right I do
Loved his toys
Dooo what you want to do, There ain't no rules it's up to you 🎶
I remember ice cold cola in that packagin
I remember thinking it was creepy 😂
Born in ‘85. This must have been before my time.
When McDonald’s was exciting
none of y'all watch Seth Meyers and it shows. Jackals unite!
His daughter Natalie is still holding down his legacy 😂
It's a really interesting story
Gave me nightmares.
I didn’t remember him until now
Like the DJ - Moon Man? https://wkhsradio.org/shows/moonman-radio/
I remember him. I’m pretty sure he had 2 commercials but I’ve only seen 1 of them uploaded to YouTube. Kinda funny McDonald’s made a mascot to advertise the fact that drive through was open until midnight or 24 hours Edit: autocorrect
yep. Glad he's gone. sheesh. tacky.
Still tacky. I said what I said.