Toy automobile:Hot Wheels | Happy Meal

In 1977, a St. Louis regional director of the Mc Donald's fast-food restaurant chain developed a meal specifically for kids. The "Happy Meal" included a burger, fries, cookies, a soft drink, and a premium, all housed conveniently in a box decorated with fun games and puzzles. At first, individual restaurant owners selected and provided their own premiums. Corporate HQ urged owners to offer a toy that were safe for all ages and one suitable for children younger than age 3. Some of the early toys went through test trials. Regional variations of the toys were common. For instance the Hot Wheels toys offered in 1986 on the East Coast differed from the ones offered on the West Coast. Until 1995, restaurant managers in other countries were free to accept or reject premiums and release them on their own schedule. Later, McDonald's made attempts to coordinate the distribution of premium toys in restaurants throughout the world. Happy Meal toys often reflect characters and events related to the release of popular movies, like "The Lion King," or "Batman," or "E.T." Other toys related to the periodic reissue of Disney classics like "Bambi," "Cinderella," and "Sleeping Beauty." Still others related to Beanie Babies, Barbie, Hot Wheels, Raggedy Ann, Transformers, Crayola Crayons, Mr. Potato Head, and the Monopoly board game. Events and holidays inspired other toys related to the Olympics, Christmas, and Halloween. A collection of Happy Meal toys, thus, presents a veriable catalogue of the characters, events, and entertainments that have dominated American popular culture in the past 40 years. To see the toys is to glimpse what America has been reading, watching, playing with, and celebrating since 1977. And perhaps more cynically, these toys reveal the extensive influence corporate America has on children.