Fast Food Nation

Schlosser begins the chapter with a brief biographical snapshot of Carl Karcher. A descendant of German Catholic immigrants, Karcher left his home near Sandusky, Ohio, to work alongside his uncle in Anaheim, California, in 1937. At the time, Anaheim was an agricultural center and nothing like it is today. With some ingenuity and foresight, Karcher eventually began to pursue business opportunities selling food. Karcher was ahead of his time in that he realized how important cars were becoming to Americans, and he capitalized on this growth. He opened Carl’s Drive-In Barbeque in Anaheim. Carl was fortunate in that he was smack dab in the middle of a huge post-WWII boom that changed the makeup of California, and Anaheim in particular. Eventually, Karcher would expand his operation into what would later be known as the Carl’s Jr. franchise.

Schlosser proceeds to tell the story of Richard and Maurice McDonald, who in the same general timeframe had likewise left their homes (for them, New Hampshire) to find opportunity in California. The McDonald brothers introduced an assembly-line approach to fast food that they called the Speedie Service System. The imperative for the system was uniformity, and everything in their restaurant was done according to very strict specifications. Also, as a way of making their brand stand out for drivers on nearby highways, Richard designed what would become one of the most famous brand logos in history: the golden arches in the shape of an “M.” The original McDonald’s opened in San Bernardino, California, and initially it was not a success. However, after some tweaking and adjustments, it gained immense popularity in a short amount of time.

Schlosser introduces other founders of now world-famous fast food chains, such as Dave Thomas of Wendy’s and Harland Sanders of Kentucky Fried Chicken. Both these men came from humble beginnings, especially Karcher, who grew up without running water at his home. These were not capitalists in the sense that one would define it in contemporary terms. These were ordinary men who, with a lot of ingenuity and some luck, were able to initiate a full-blown revolution in how Americans would consume food over during 20th century and beyond.

Schlosser takes the reader on a quick tour of McDonald’s headquarters in Oak Brook, Illinois. He points out the Ray Kroc museum, the many novelty displays, and the Hamburger University. He proceeds to a discussion of Ray Kroc and Walt Disney. The men were contemporaries, and Disney was a highly influential figure for Kroc, especially in the way Disney devised marketing schemes that targeted children. Schlosser also lays out the main events surrounding Kroc’s purchase of McDonald’s from brothers Richard and Maurice. One of Kroc’s first moves was to reach out to Walt Disney to pursue the possibility of opening a McDonald’s at Disneyland, which was still in development. The request was denied; however, this did not deter Kroc. Schlosser detours away from the early days of McDonald’s to a discussion of Walt Disney, his operation, and his political affiliations. Unlike Disney, Kroc was not a polarizing political figure. Instead, he sought to use politicians to his favor once he had gathered enough clout to influence them.

Inspired by Disney’s direct advertising to children, Kroc sought ways to mimic the strategy. Eventually, the character Ronald McDonald was created. The first person to play the mascot was former weatherman Willard Scott. Soon, Ronald McDonald’s popularity would rival that of Mickey Mouse, eventually becoming even more famous than the iconic Disney creation. Schlosser uses this as a jumping-off point into a discussion of how McDonald’s strategy of marketing to children provided a blueprint for other industries, so that eventually, targeting children became commonplace and ubiquitous, including product placement in schools. Schlosser outlines various attempts by the fast food industry to access school districts across the nation. Capitalizing on declining tax revenue for school districts nationwide, leaders of the industry took advantage and offered promises of more revenue in exchange for licensing agreements to operate within schools.