Oldest Operating McDonalds Restaurant In The World
A visit to the worlds oldest operating McDonalds restaurant in Downey California . Ordered some food , checked out the museum and made a new pigeon friend .
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Transcript
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today's adventure brings us to Downey
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California and across the street from
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where I'm standing on the corner of
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Lakewood Boulevard and Florence Avenue
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is the oldest operating McDonald's
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welcome everyone at the womb here the
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last time I was on this property was
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2014 and when I was here way back then I
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did not properly document or detail the
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nooks and crannies of what's here on
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site I'm gonna change that today and I
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would also get some food something I
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have never done at the oldest operating
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McDonald's it is not the first Mickey
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D's nor is it the most unusual or
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bizarre from the franchise the let's not
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take away from the fact that in 1953 it
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opened its doors and it is still serving
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food join me show you up top old neon
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speedy there's no Ronald perched above
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the sign just speedy the chef promoting
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hamburgers and it's amazing to think
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that there was a point when they
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calculated exactly how many burgers they
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had sold this particular sign stopped at
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500 million but they just keep selling
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them every day day in day out a number
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keeps accumulating it's easy to get
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distracted by those golden arches luring
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us in
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but I almost failed to notice the
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shrubbery a topiary that has been carved
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out here
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on this hill they're not golden it's
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more like green like the green arches
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for those driving by at rapid speed they
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have placed a billboard right next to
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the thoroughfare saying don't let
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history pass you by who could say no to
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that that cute little guy running around
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up there with a burger for a face this
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guy pulling in nope
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he wasn't you wouldn't think it by
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looking at it at first appearance but
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they even have a drive-through it goes
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around the back of the building in that
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direction painted on the ground lets you
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know which way to go this is probably
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added much later speaking of progress
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this is something they definitely didn't
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have in 1953 mobile order and pay and
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just pass this do not enter is the
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drive-through down that alley
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of course traffic comes towards me not
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in the direction I'm heading but they've
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added a drive-through window tucked away
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back here in this in this little alley
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to sign states that their dollar
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hamburger is a better value today than
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it was in 1955 and they give you
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different examples of gas prices bread
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pricing and the cost of a house quick
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little history lesson Roger Williams and
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blood Landon opened this restaurant in
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August of 53
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it was the third franchisee spot in just
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a little bit I will go up to the walk-up
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window and order some food but first I
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want to go inside this glass structure
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just to the right because indoors there
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is a small museum that is free to wander
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around
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that's currently under construction but
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they do have the original doors from the
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first hamburger University which was
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located and Elk Grove Village Illinois
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you have to enter through those doors to
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check out some of the historical items
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that are placed along the walls oh
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here's a oh that right there that's one
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of the multi mixers behind that glass
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case it gets really crowded back there
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in the kitchen down here is the original
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operations manual almost looks like a
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pizza tray there but it's not the buns
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were toasted right on the grill but the
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tops were transferred to a lazy susan
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style prep table to be dressed with
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condiments while the bottom is replaced
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directly on top of the cooked seasoned
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beef patties that's what's going on
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right there and that
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in that photo weekly deliveries of a
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hundred pounds of potatoes range from 20
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to 70 sacks per store what you're
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looking at is a potato peeler
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that's an instruction booklet for a
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potato peeler timer the last thing you
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want our potatoes to be overcooked look
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at the perfect just amount of ketchup
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that is placed on that bun there it's
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like almost like dotted on instead of
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like I use when I put ketchup on it
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never shows up in dots like it's just
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like kind of smear it on prices have
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definitely changed a little bit over the
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years a hamburger was 15 cents add
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cheese for four cents more french fries
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just a dime as was a cup of coffee
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root beer coca-cola or an orange drink
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depending on the size was they were from
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ten to fifteen cents and the shakes were
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only twenty cents of course a man who
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needs no introduction
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mr. Ronnie always friendly always
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smiling always waving and it appears as
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if he has locked in two employees into a
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cage of snow Ronald let them out of
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there Ronald actually it's just a
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security door because as stated a little
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bit ago they are working on parts of
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this museum
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this is a recreation of what it would
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have been like a wardrobe-wise head
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where to walk up to the counter and an
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order some food the door is locked
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we can't peek in the window you see the
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employee old-school vintage and Pony
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manual right down there and some glasses
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on display which used to be a real hot
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commodity we need order a meal girl like
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an extra couple bucks you can get those
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you get those sweet glasses I think I
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think honestly I still have some of
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those TV tray from 1982 just hanging
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around over there there's a lot of
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artifacts back there a hot apple pie hat
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paper hat promoting the apple pies and
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down here some old photos and even a
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puzzle thousand-piece puzzle right down
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there this is interesting this states
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that a new drive-in opened on that
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Friday and look at the dates 1953 which
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means possibly it did have a try them
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back when it opened for a that's
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interesting register system was a little
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different as well this one worked in
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conjunction with paper tickets so the
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cashier had to bring up a write all the
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information on the paper and then also
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place it in the register so they had to
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do two jobs just to take your money a
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few years later is 56 they had something
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called celebration days
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this newspaper pamphlet is promoting
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that stating that on the corner of that
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cross street the man we now have wider
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and paved roads how many pens completely
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how to traffic as and that's when the
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crowd showed up it was a lot easier to
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get here once the roads were
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or widened some of these cups are made
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of plastic some of them are made of
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paper this one is even a paper handle
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that's like a teeny tiny cup I think
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that might have been for maybe for ice
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cream oh they're sweet
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but you gotta love characters made out
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of feed running around oh there's the
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ham without the hammer yeah yeah that's
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that's a weird interpretation of the
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Hamburglar the museum i'm standing in is
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made to resemble this old photo of a
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restaurant and speaking of photos take a
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look is that the OG Ronald McDonald yes
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my friends that is Ronald McDonald
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equipped with a cup for a nose and a
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very bizarre helmets a fur hat a history
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of the logo speedy was from 48 to 61 and
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then Archie McDonald's and the family
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crest came after the modern logo that we
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all know love and are used to did not
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start until 1968 according to this and
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then there is the slashed M logo from 61
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to 68 see how it has the
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the slash through I am from the era
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where I also remember a nother mascot he
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just so happens to be behind that glass
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door Mac tonight
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look at that guy quite the piano player
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and a heck of a good singer you don't
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see too many Mack tonight's anymore that
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is awesome
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and I would love to own a jacket hanging
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on the wall right there is that a jacket
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or a sweater
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either way it's got the Mack tonight
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logo on it and I would I would support
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that like nobody's business it is kind
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of strange that Ray Kroc Hall is next to
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the restroom facilities will they honor
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their founder Ray Kroc by placing all
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the all the articles every with Plex in
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the bathrooms original owners but Landon
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and Roger Williams are pictured here in
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this newspaper article from 1980 next to
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some stuffed characters here's another
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photo from the second anniversary of the
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property it was a video playing behind
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me talking about the company and Ray
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Kroc and really fascinated with this
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old-school timepiece this wristwatch you
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would get when you donated to the Ronald
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McDonald House there he is showing off
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the multi mixer in 1951 he's got his
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hands on machine and this photo and
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I just oozes nostalgia outside they have
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opened this area to be able to sit and
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eat you still have those two employees
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just staring at you like there's like a
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staring contest and I'm pretty sure that
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they would win because they don't blink
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nope I'm looking carefully and I'm not
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seeing any blinking you can see the
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milkshakes and sodas being handed out to
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the customers that may have wound up and
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made noise at some point Mac tonight
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race car and other paraphernalia
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including the coca-cola bear the only
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thing I'd see relatable are the golden
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arches which are printed on is my scarf
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that cup has the cup has feet all this
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learning about Americana has given me
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quite an appetite you don't go indoors
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to order like we are commonly used to
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you go up to the walk-up window located
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outdoors order complete it picked it up
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from the windows got it here there is a
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seating area around the side like made
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into the structure but I'm gonna opt for
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this table right over here and this is
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what we're dealing with
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got myself a regular cheeseburger just
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the dollar the dollar menu version
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dollar fry here small fry and a dollar
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soda now you can for one dollar you can
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get any size drink but I figured that
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was probably enough for the amount of
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food I'm not going to extreme today they
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have given me one packet of ketchup but
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also some strawberry preserves somehow
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somehow ended up in my bag
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well from this angle the golden arch you
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get the idea it's almost like a rainbow
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the pot of gold is at the end of that
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rainbow
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out of meet in between these two months
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at the end of the March yellow rainbow
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could that be could that be one of those
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infamous fry loving pigeons you want
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this don't you
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there you go
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enjoy it
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get a hold of that thing show it who's
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boss
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we could have just challenge do you
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realize how many calories you just
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ingested well if you ever get bored fly
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over here and look at the USA nutrition
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fact board
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I can total up everything I ate and what
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the nutritional value and calorie
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content was oh crap I just realized I
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didn't see this side until it was too
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late I I broke the rules I didn't mean
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to please forgive me Ronald how can you
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deny how can you deny these things and
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some some of the original McDonald's
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chow
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my apologies oh I didn't see the sign
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till afterwards the wind has started to
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gust up a bit
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that pigeon had just ate the fry flew by
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me in rapid speed he probably got
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scolded for for eating what I gave him
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if you miss it go back to rewind it and
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pause it you see the pigeon fly by but
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the wind was blowing until the until I
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got distracted by the bird the flags are
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waving around on the left the McDonald's
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flag the good old US of A oh there goes
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in the middle and the California state
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flag okay it's working again
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whoo that's a good shot right there
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another slogan you rarely see stating
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your kind of place and even though there
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is a washboard with the information
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about the establishment in front of the
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order window there also is one here
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designated and given by the city of
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downing calling it the speedy McDonald's
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store
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and they have these concrete stanchions
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on either side because you don't want
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someone driving up and destroying this
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pretty neat to think about all the
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generations of people who have come here
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over the years walked up to that same
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window 1953 that was a heck of a long
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time ago way before I was even a glimmer
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and anyone's eye is still going strong
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lots of memories I'm sure we're shared
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here it will continue to be shared on
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this property and let's face it unless
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you've been living under a rock you know
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what McDonald's is and most of us have
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eaten at one or more than one on
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multiple occasions and this is the
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oldest operating one in existence
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heck yeah
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I ate here not wanting to state the
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obvious or a catchphrase that has been
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definitely overdone over the years but I
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have to wonder standing here I have to
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inquire are those now what about the
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maybe those that's gonna do it for today
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description box and speaking of things
17:44
down below there
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are some corn on the cob that have been
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eaten here I guess someone didn't watch
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someone didn't want to indulge
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and McDonald's fair enough I'll see you
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in the next video the vlog is Elmer
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don't let Ronnie take the glory Ronnie
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could never do what you do
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your speedy the chef have you ever seen
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that clown pick up a spatula