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Ray Kroc Biography

Claim to Fame: Founder of McDonald’s
Dates: 1902
Date of Death: 1984
Diabetes Type: Unknown

Raymond Albert Kroc, born on October 5, 1902, was an American entrepreneur, most famous for significantly expanding the McDonald's Corporation. Ray Kroc was a believer in lifelong self-improvement long before it was a popular topic. It was this belief that inspired him on the day he first encountered the concept that would change his life and the way America eats. Despite facing a number of personal obstacles, including diabetes and arthritis, Kroc had a dream that would not quit.

When Kroc saw his first McDonald's restaurant at the age of 52, he immediately saw its potential to revolutionize the food service industry. Working with Dick and Mac McDonald (who founded the original restaurant in 1940), Kroc built McDonald’s from a single eatery into one of the most universal symbols of our nation's success.

Dubbed the “Hamburger King”, Kroc was included in the TIME 100 list of the world's most influential titans of industry, and amassed a $500 million fortune within his lifetime. He passed away on January 14, 1984, just days before the McDonald's Corporation sold its 50 billionth hamburger.





excerpted and adapted from Vision, Values and Courage: Leadership for Quality Management (Simon & Schuster, 1994)

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