During The Real Ghostbusters first full year in 1987 McDonald’s and Columbia Pictures came together with a theme, to sell your parents a cheeseburger (or McNugget) happy meal, and naturally include a The Real Ghostbusters toy.
The theme for the multiple Happy Meal boxes had to do with going back to school. Each meal box had fun and educational, (my 9 year old self wouldn’t have quite thought of them in that way) activities included on them.
The four theme related “places” are:
- Headquarters
- Library
- Museum
- Schoolhouse
Each The Real Ghostbusters meal box included one of the following toys. Really, The Real Ghostbusters stationary set.
- A Mr. Stay-Puft pencil sharpener.
- “Containment Chamber.” A clear pouch with a ghost design.
- The Real Ghostbusters pencil with Slimer/Fire House topper.
- A Mr. Stay-Puft note pad and “no ghost” logo eraser.
- A Mr. Stay-Puft note pad and The Real Ghostbusters 6″ ruler.
I remember going to McDonald’s during The Real Ghostbusters promotion. I had some, probably not all of the meal boxes with accompanying items. Words in this blog post understate what a big deal this was after Ghostbusters, in the early years of The Real Ghostbusters, and with Ghostbusters II off in the distance.
Today I don’t have a single physical box or included toy. What I and now we all have thanks to David Boozer who runs The Ghostbusters Vault are high resolution scans for each small arched box.
This wouldn’t be the last time McDonalds and Columbia Pictures got together for a The Real Ghostbusters promotion. For some reason in 1992 after The Real Ghostbusters had ended its run 😥 it was decided to have Happy Meals…in paper bags. What gives Ronald? The toys, not so much this bag had a bike accessory theme.
I sorta remember this promotion. From when I was 9 in 1987, this would have been a different time in my life. I probably would have been too old anyway for items which could have turned my Specialized bike into an Ecto bike.
- A Slimer horn.
- An Egon Spengler spinner.
- P.K.E water bottle.
- ECTO-1 bike siren.
Non US commercial.
Sources:
- Columbia Pictures (Sony Pictures)
- McDonalds
- David Boozer
- Ghostbusters Wiki
- Mark Krugman (1987 Promotional Commercial)
- Slyster59 (1992 Promotional Commercial)
