(NEXSTAR) — For almost sixty years, McDonald’s has offered the option to enjoy two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun. Interestingly, under different circumstances, this iconic sandwich might have been known by another name.
The creation of the Big Mac is credited to McDonald’s franchisee Jim Delligatti in Pittsburgh, who introduced it in 1967 to compete with other local eateries. Just a year afterward, it was rolled out nationwide, quickly becoming a beloved staple on the McDonald’s menu.
In a 1993 interview with the Los Angeles Times, Delligatti confessed that the Big Mac was not a wholly original idea. Instead, he patterned it after similar burgers from competitors, notably resembling the Big Boy burger by Big Boy.
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In this Aug. 21, 2008 file photo Big Mac creator Jim Delligatti, right, poses with a Big Mac birthday cake and Ronald McDonald at his 90th birthday party in Canonsburg, Pa.. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar/File) -
In this Aug. 21, 2008 file photo Big Mac creator Jim Delligatti sits attends his 90th birthday party in Canonsburg, Pa.. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar/File)
Despite its current moniker and the similarity to its competition, the Big Mac nearly had a name more fitting to be paired with a light lager or high-end establishment.
Early on, the top name suggestion for Delligatti’s burger was “Blue Ribbon Burger,” not to be confused with Pabst Blue Ribbon beer. “The Aristocrat” was also a near-contender.
Then came along 21-year-old Esther Glickstein Rose, a secretary in the McDonald’s advertising company.
As she explained to The Associated Press, an executive en route to a board meeting asked her to suggest a name for the new, then-secret burger.
There were laughs aplenty when she suggested Big Mac.
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McDonald’s Meal — One Big Mac hamburger, one large serving of French fries. Total weigh, 304 grams. Cost, $1.50. July 4, 1979. (Photo by Pearce/Fairfax Media via Getty Images). -
A McDonalds Big Mac on top of it’s polystyrene Takeaway box. Picture taken 28th June 1994; McDonalds Burger. (Photo by King/Daily Mirror/Mirrorpix via Getty Images) -
(Original Caption) 10/15/1984-Tuscaloosa, AL-President Ronald Reagan takes a bite of a Big Mac, as Charles Patterson chats with him during a brief campaign stop. (Bettmann via Getty)
Yet the name stuck, and was soon found on McDonald’s menus nationwide.
Still, it took 17 years for Rose to be recognized, with a plaque and some coupons, for her contribution. She never received any money from the company, though she admitted she never asked.
Speaking of money, you could’ve used the change sitting in your cupholder to buy the first Big Macs. They joined the menu at just 45 cents each, a point of contention for executives, according to Delligatti. While a small price today, it was double that of the company’s cheeseburger. (For context, that 1967 price equates to about $4.40 today, due to inflation.)
Delligatti, who was also honored only with a plaque, adored his burger addition so highly, he opened the Big Mac Museum Restaurant in North Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, in 2007 with the backing of McDonald’s.
Delligatti has claims to another McDonald’s favorite, the Hotcakes and Sausage Meal. He offered it to local steelworkers coming from their night shifts, according to the New York Times.
The Big Mac has, meanwhile, largely remained the same since Delligatti brought it to his restaurants, though there have been spinoffs. Take, for example, the Chicken Big Mac unveiled last year, or the Double Big Mac.
McDonald’s estimates that 550 million Big Macs are sold in the U.S. annually.
While it’s perfectly fitting to enjoy a Big Mac on Wednesday, National Burger Day, it may be more apt to wait until August 2, better known to the fans of the Golden Arches as International Big Mac Day.
