An American Icon Turns 40

The Big Mac sandwich proves it's much more than the sum of its ingredients

Commemorating courageous leaders, innovators, hall of famers, and Nobel laureates is part of the American experience. But celebrating a hamburger? Now that's a statement. Over the last 40 years, the Big Mac sandwich has solidified itself as a permanent fixture on the American landscape. Few foodstuffs are as familiar worldwide as the Big Mac, which despite turning 40 in 2008 -- a landmark achievement for McDonald's -- still sells over 550 million units every year.

Jim "MJ" Delligatti, 89, one of McDonald's founder Ray Kroc's earliest franchisees and inventor of the Big Mac, never dreamed his 1968 "invention" would become a major piece of Americana. Next to baseball and apple pie, his Big Mac stands as a proud figure of American pop-culture; at McDonald's, Delligatti's sandwich means even more -- it signifies a long-standing, company-wide loyalty to the owner/operators and suppliers who have helped make McDonald's what it is today.