Awesome / The Founder

• The McDonald's brothers building their restaurant is a quintessential success story of the American Dream.
  • In the 1920s, they pack their bags and head west to make their fortune, like so many others before them. Mac wanted to be in the movie business. After driving trucks at Columbia Pictures for a few years, they saved enough to buy a movie theater, their own little piece of show business. Sadly, when they do, the Stock Market crashes and the Great Depression begins.
  • Seeing that the one guy making money has a hot dog stand, the brothers decide to change their business because people still need to eat. They open a stand and it goes well, but the town is too small for them. So, they decide to relocate to San Bernardino, and since they can't afford a new stand, put it on a truck. They even saw it in half so it can fit under an overpass.
  • Setting up their stand, they decide to cash in on the growing drive-in model. After months of planning, they open up McDonald's Famous BBQ, and it's a hit. But eventually, sales level off because of the many flaws in running a drive-in.
  • Dick comes to a realization that 87% of their sales come from just hamburgers, fries, and soda. They soon recognize how much wasteful expenditures there are in carhops, plates, cutlery, and more. On top of that, they could streamline their kitchen to prepare food in 30 seconds rather than 30 minutes. It means tearing everything down and starting from scratch, but they're up to the challenge.
  • Dick and Mac bring their staff to a tennis court with a layout of their new kitchen. They then make pretend burgers and fries as Dick makes adjustments to the layout. After several hours, they get the motions right, go to a builder, and have the custom-made kitchen built to their exact specs. But, the launch is a disaster.
  • The first time, customers are bewildered by the new format of having to order themselves and eat from paper packaging. Dick wants to throw in the towel and go back to drive-in, but Mac tries to salvage this by throwing a grand reopening. It's going great...until millions of flies get attracted to their giant spotlights, driving everyone away.
  • The next day, Dick and Mac meet to discuss going back to drive-in, when a young boy comes up to their window. Mac gives him three burgers on the house. Then someone pulls up in their car. Then another car comes up, and another, and another. Soon, the line is around the block. McDonald's is finally a success.