McDonald's, Assumable Mortgages, and 'Funflation'

Fast food giant McDonald's first opened in San Bernardino, California, in 1940 as a small drive-through run by brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald. After a now-legendary meeting, Ray Kroc (who was selling the brothers a Multimixer for milkshakes) became the McDonald's franchising agent and is responsible for transforming the family-run restaurant into a global powerhouse. As of June 2026, McDonald's was worth more than $200B and had over 40,000 locations in more than 100 countries.

> Kroc proposed franchising McDonald's to sell more of his Multimixers seven years before buying the McDonald brothers out of the company for $2.7M. (More)
> Walt Disney and Ray Kroc met as ambulance drivers in WWI. (More)

While other fast food companies already existed, most notably the burger joint White Castle, McDonald's revolutionized the industry through its emphasis on highly efficient operations and its success in franchising.

> The "Speedee Service System" was the assembly-line production method pioneered by the McDonald brothers that revolutionized fast food in the US. (More)

> Franchise owners lease the buildings and land that the McDonald's Corporation owns, hence why the fast food brand is often called a real-estate company. (More)

> McDonald's french fries are, by far, the most popular french fries available at fast food restaurants around the world. (More)

Since its widespread expansion throughout the latter half of the 1900s, McDonald's has become one of the world's most recognizable brands. The iconic golden arches outside each drive-through are proxies for American culture (and have even been considered political symbolism), thanks to McDonald's uniquely American founding story and its emphasis on cheap, efficient dining.

> McDonald's became the first American fast food restaurant to open in the Soviet Union in 1990. (More)

> See photos of McDonald's locations around the world from the "McAtlas." (More)

Discover more: 

> The story of "Uncle Jerry," the security guard who rigged the McDonald's Monopoly sweepstakes by handing out 60 winning pieces worth more than $24M. (More)

> Before being sued over a customer's third-degree burns, McDonald's required all coffee to be served between 180 and 190 degrees Fahrenheit. (More)

> Explore "McBroken," an online map of which McDonald's ice cream machines are broken in the US. (More)

🫶 Humankind: When a UK woman won the lottery and became a millionaire, she gave £5K to her neighbors so they could take a vacation. 

In partnership with Janicek Performance Group

The Story Gets Told Whether You're Ready or Not

Going public. Raising a round. Stepping onto a major industry stage. Media interviews. These are the moments when how you communicate matters as much as what you've built. Most leaders think about it too late. 

That’s where Janicek Performance Group (JPG) comes in. They teach entire organizations how to look and sound more trustworthy, so every leader who speaks for the brand does it well. JPG trains executives, C-Suites, and entire organizations to own that moment before it arrives. Built by a 3X Emmy Award Winning TV news exec, JPG's coaching pairs real leadership, media, and conference experience with a holistic approach to leadership communication.

JPG partners with Fortune 500 companies, leaders at JPMorgan, MassMutual, biotech firms, and major health systems—helping them turn high-stakes visibility into a strategic advantage. Ready to tell your story on your terms? Book a call. 

Please support our sponsors!

 News in Context 

1440 brings you the knowledge and context behind the week's stories:

All 32 of the nation's biggest banks passed the Federal Reserve's annual “stress test” last week, indicating that the banking system could withstand a large-scale economic slump. (More)

> The stress test was created as part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, which was signed into law in the wake of the Great Recession. 

> Why the meeting that created the Federal Reserve was originally disguised as a duck hunt at a prestigious club.

Inflation rose more than 4% in May, one of the fastest climbs in the past three years. (More)

> The highest inflation ever recorded in US history was estimated at 30% in 1778.

> How even reality TV show prizes have been diluted by inflation. 

Broadly speaking, tech stocks were down last week as some investors raised concerns about how long it’s taken for mega investments in artificial intelligence to pay out. (More)

> How the stock market works, explained in three minutes. 

> Why Warren Buffett avoided investing in tech stocks during the dot-com boom. 

OpenAI is leaning toward delaying going public until 2027 as company advisers question retail investor enthusiasm post-SpaceX IPO. (More)

> Elon Musk once tried to make himself CEO of OpenAI. 

> Read OpenAI CEO Sam Altman's life advice. 

One Story We're Taking Stock In

The recent price jump in traditional summertime splurges like concerts and professional sports games has a new name: "funflation." Nosebleed seats for a World Cup match or the NBA finals that cost thousands of dollars a head are the new norm—and yet, the struggling middle class is still in attendance.

That's partly due to the rise of buy now, pay later apps that help finance ticket sales, but can also be attributed to changing economic realities. When factors such as stubbornly high mortgage rates make traditional financial goals like buying a home feel out of reach, perhaps spending thousands of dollars traveling to a Harry Styles concert feels easier to justify. The feature story below—one of our personal favorite reads of the week—explains how we got here.

> When did having fun get so expensive? The summer when "funflation" went wild. (Read)

> What are buy now, pay later loans? (1440 Topics)

In partnership with Janicek Performance Group

Train the Whole Leader, Not Just the Speech

Most coaching polishes a single speech. The JPG Method™ builds the skill across four disciplines—executive presence, public speaking, media, and personal brand—so leaders command the room long after the spotlight moves on. At the top, communication isn't a soft skill … it's a competitive advantage.

More than 10,000 executives over 20-plus years have trained this way, at places like Mayo Clinic, Harvard, and the LA Dodgers. The next high-stakes moment is coming. Book a call with JPG before it does.

Please support our sponsors!

 Etcetera 

> Whatever happened to the once-popular digital coupon platform Groupon?

> The story of billionaire John D. Rockefeller's con artist father.

> Why prediction markets and sports betting aren't investing.

> Anthropic's origin story begins with a break from OpenAI over safety concerns.

> How rare, so-called "assumable" mortgages land homebuyers a 3% rate.

> Inside the recent growth of family offices.

> The fastest-shrinking jobs in the US, visualized.
 

> Why the drink that became Coca-Cola was originally called Pemberton's French Wine Coca.

> Inside Amazon Web Services, Amazon's largest profit engine.
 

> The reclusive billionaire who ran Sears before its bankruptcy.

> Why bond yields, the returns investors earn from a bond's interest, are considered a key economic barometer.

> What was Jeff Bezos's childhood like?