McDonald's Prank
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you familiar with Rob
Cockerham? This imaginative rogue combines his natural ability for
materials handling with a quirky sense of mischief to produce a myriad
of pranks and scientific(?) experiments, which he then posts on the web
for the amusement of all. Check him out - you'll be glad you did. |
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Anyway ... after reading some of his adventures, I emailed him to convey my amusement. Through a series of back-and-forth emails, I ultimately involved myself in his latest project. He asked whether my local McDonald's had a sign like the one on the left. After I confirmed it had a similar one, he said he'd mail me a package and instructions to participate in a little sign-replacement manuever. I wasn't sure what to expect. |
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At work the following week, I received an oversized envelope, containing the following letter and placard: I noticed the other day that my local McDonald's doesn't have a "hot apple pie" placard on its "treat" menu, so I made one to help them sell more of my favorite winter-time treats. Then I got to thinking, the apple pie is a symbol of American culture and freedom! The more I thought about it, the more I became convinced that it is my patriotic duty to help McDonald's restaurants across the US (and Canada) sell more apple pies! I've printed up a few here at home, and now I need your help! Please help me get these apple-pie advert-cards to their rightful spots on America's Fast-Food menu boards! For safety reasons, I suggest posting them at night, when the drive-thru is deserted, and bring a camera if you have one. Thank you, and God bless America. Rob Cockerham |
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I took a test drive through the local McDonald's Drive-thru to check out the territory. I hit the McDonald's at 1690 President Avenue in Fall River, MA - in a busy area right off the highway, bound to receive more traffic than a typical McDonald's. I noticed that the pies in Massachusetts are more expensive than in California, priced at 99 cents! I certainly didn't want the sign removed because someone noticed an incorrect price. Thankfully, I was well equipped with Avery labels. |
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On the night of the expedition, I printed out a price correction and affixed it to the placard. Chris and I were ready to rock. On February 9, 2002 at 1:30 a.m., we took Route 24 to the rotary and slid around the corner to McDonald's plaza. We did a careful drive-by to check the area for cops. There were none! As an added bonus, there were plenty of cars parked in the plaza, thanks to a 24-hour CVS pharmacy. Our presence wouldn't look too suspicious. We proceeded to the drive-thru without further delay. |
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We thought the menu was much improved. |
Chris manned the camera while I performed the switch. I removed a placard for a McChicken something-or-other and hid it behind the Fruit and Yogurt parfait.
Mmmm ... pies! |
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Chris ate a pie as we drove away.
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As we left the McDonald's area and drove back through the plaza to the exit, a police car pulled in and parked in front of CVS. Mu-haha! He was too late to foil our evil plans! |
Give me a thrill and email me!
All images and associated text © Rebecca Paiva, 2002
