Countdown to Halloween - McDonald's Nugget Buddies

Consider this a companion piece to my previous post about the restaurant chain's Halloween Pails if you will. In 1993 the Fast Food chain introduce a series of Happy Meal toys consisting of the McDonald Land McNugget characters with Halloween costumes. McNugget Buddies were the talking puppet versions of the McDonalds chicken menu item so popular with kids that appeared in commercials for the fast food chain. The first series consisted of  McBoo the Ghost, Monster McNugget, a Frankenstein monster, Witch the witch, McNuggula the Vampire, Pumpkin McNugget and Mummie the mummy.

The set of Six toys came in one of three Happy Meal boxed that featured the McNugget buddies.

Not too shabby in my opinion, you got a cool lil toy in a box with some decent artwork on it, always a winner in my book.

In 1996 a second set of McNugget Halloween Buddies was released consisting of Alien McNugget, Ronald McNugget, Dragon McNugget, Spider McNugget, Fairy Princess McNugget and Rock Star McNugget.

There was only a single box style for this series.

Kind of a let down after the first series. Where was the McNugget Wolf? The McNugget Creature from the Barbecue Lagoon? The Metaluna McNugget? Aw well, the McNugget characters were shelved back in 1997 when McDonalds changed it's advertising campaign to try and promote better health (snicker snicker chortle snicker).

Countdown to Halloween - McDonald's Halloween Pails

During the Halloween of 1986, McDonald’s introduced something new in their restaurants. They temporarily abandoned the cardboard Happy Meal box in favor of a themed bucket. A candy pail for collecting Halloween treats, complete with lid and handle. The original three designs came in bright orange each adorning a unique expression. McGoblin with the evil grin, McBoo with the frightened face, and McPunk’n with the traditional Jack O' Lantern face.

In 1989 the restaurant introduced the McGhost and McWitch. Unoriginal naming aside, they were worthy additions.

Over the years changes were made and additions to the line occured including a purple witch pail and Play Doh mold lid pail. In 1999 the Pails changed and instead of the faces from years past were replaced with scenes of the McDonalds characters cavorting in costumes. The lids on these Pails contained Halloween cookie cutters.

 

The final year of the original run of Halloween Pails came in 2001 with a new bat shaped Pail handle.

In 2010 after an absence of 9 years, the Halloween Pails returned, now with Halloween scenes of  Mt Potato Head and stickers that allowed kids to customize the scenes however they wanted. The pails featured cool handles that resembled either a Jack O' Lantern or a Skull and Crossbone that could be removed and used as a mask.

 

As to what McDonalds has in store for 2011, that I do not know. No information is available online and I haven't set foot in a McDonalds or a Burger King since Easter (doctor said if I didn't stop eating the fast food  I was gonna drop dead any day). Once I do find some information I'll do a new post.