Live Long and Are You Going to Finish Your Fries?

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I kind of went "primal geek" this past weekend when I took my kids to Burger King. The current Star Trek (well deserved) movie hype and promotion harkens back to when I was a lad and McDonalds ran their Star Trek Happy Meals. Somehow I conned my Mum into going more than once during that period (which was rare) and just went Trek mad with this promotion.

You can click on the boxes to get a good look at the art, truly these are Happy Meals. I don't even really like fast food much anymore but these things are great memories of when I did. Even though the Motion Picture ended up kind of boring, I was still into it, devouring the Mego Toys, reading the cool Marvel comic, good times.



And of course, each meal included a prize, my children got way cool talking toys over the weekend ( I never tired of hearing "kirk to Enterprise" on the 4 hour road trip the next day) but I really loved this cheap-o wrist communicator dealie, I had fun with it for a whole afternoon. This one won't fit me, so I'll leave it in the package.

I have more happy meal boxes, one of these days I'll make a gallery.


Star Trek the Motion Picture Related Links:



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[toys2cool]

Those Happy meals are bad

[livnxxxl]

Neat stuff. I always like seeing stuff like this. I have some happy meal boxes around here some where. Does McDonald's still give out boxes for Happy Meals? I have not ate at a McD's in so long I have no idea what they are doing these days.

[vulcan2074]

I've always liked the McDonalds Happy Meal. I got addicted at a young age LOL
Sammy

[ScottA]

I'm actually looking for a set of toys from this one for a friend of mine. I have the boxes, just need the toys for them.

McDs still does boxes but not necessarily for every promotion. They seem to skip around from using boxes or bags.

[Mikey]

I read somewhere the STTMP Happy Meal was McDonalds first Happy Meal ever.

Is that true ?

[Wee67]

I read somewhere the STTMP Happy Meal was McDonalds first Happy Meal ever.

Is that true ?

No. STTMP was the first promotional tie-in Happy Meal, but the Happy Meal had already been introduced. I think the first Happy Meals caem with more generic prizes/toys like pencils, eracers, stencils and such.

[ScottA]

From wikipedia:

The very first Happy Meal in 1979 in Kansas City was the Circus Wagon Happy Meal and McDonaldland Fun-To-Go in St. Louis. It cost one dollar and contained either a McDoodler stencil, a puzzle book, a McWrist wallet, an ID bracelet or McDonaldland character erasers.[4] The Circus Wagon Happy Meal consisted of a hamburger or cheeseburger, twelve-ounce soft drink, a small order of french fries, and a "McDonaldland Cookie Sampler", a small portion of cookies.

Often the Happy Meal is themed to promote a current family-oriented movie. The first such promotion was the Star Trek Meal, to promote Star Trek: The Motion Picture in December 1979. The packaging used for the Star Trek Meal consisted of various images and games related to the film, as well as a comic strip adaptation of the film.

[samurainoir]

As a kid, I remember that they had something called "The Treat of the Week", and they were free stuff, like pencil toppers and stuff.

The Star Trek happy meal was mindblowing to me. I think I have more vivid memories of the box and that little color filter decoder thingy than the actually movie itself (other than the opening where the Klingons bought it).

At what point did they start selling the toys that previously came "free" with a happy meal? When did they get rid of the boxes? It's kind of sad to me now that they come in brown bags.

[Mikey]

Thank for the info, guys

[MysteryWho]

Wow. That was a blow to the brain. I recall getting one of those right after seeing the movie in the theater. It seems to me that mine was somehow Spock-themed, but I could be wrong. That box art looks really familiar. It kind of puts me in a stupor, just like one of those black-light tapestries meant to mess with the 'reality' of some stoned guy in 1970.

[kryptosmaster]

It kills me that they show the boxes on the commercials yet I can't even remember the last time I saw a Happy Meal Box. They just cheap out now and put them in those paper bags.
Rich

[UnderdogDJLSW]

They were using boxes for the Kids Bop CD promotion they were running this month. I think someone else mentioned that they tend to jump back and forth on it. The Batman Lego also used boxes. I still have my two Happy Meal boxes from ST:TMP.

[livnxxxl]

They just cheap out now and put them in those paper bags.
Rich

That sucks! It seems like every company keeps trying to cut corners and the really cool things keep disapearing. How low can they go? OR more like How cheap can they get? How can it still possibly be called a happy meal when it is being put in a cheap bag? That to me is more like an unhappy meal.

I am just glad that McD's didn't do the new Star Trek movie promotion. I am not a huge fan of fast food at all. However, I would much rather buy a Whopper than a Big and Nasty any day.

[kryptosmaster]

They were using boxes for the Kids Bop CD promotion they were running this month. I think someone else mentioned that they tend to jump back and forth on it. The Batman Lego also used boxes. I still have my two Happy Meal boxes from ST:TMP.

Not where I went. Took the kids there Friday and got the same old crappy bag.
I wonder if they have them but you have to actually special request them??
Rich