75-Year-Old 'McLegend' Has Worked At McDonald's For 53 Years, No Plans To Retire

The year is 1970. President Nixon is in office, the Beatles release Let It Be and then call it a day, Willie Mays becomes the 10th player to reach the 3,000 hit plateau, and a wide-eyed 22-year-old Barbara Cramer began her illustrious career at a McDonald's in Fort Pierce, Florida.

And she's still going strong there after 53 years and has no plans to hang up her drive-thru headset.

That's why she is rightfully being called a "McLegend."

It all started back then when Cramer applied for a job with the school board one day and then the Golden Arches the next. The school board made the mistake of not being more on top of their flow of new applicants because McDonald's pounced at the opportunity to bring Cramer into the fold.

And look at what happened. They wound up with a franchise centerpiece and a generational talent.

According to WPTV, Cramer has worked at several area McD's over the years, and earlier this month she was honored with an anniversary celebration.

However, don't mistake that for a retirement party. She has no plans to ride off into the McSunset.

That's good because I'm not sure that area McDonald's customers could handle it. Look at what happened when Walmart great Gail Lewis called it a day back in November.

There wasn't a dry eye in Morris, Illinois, Walmart 844. And that was after only a decade of service.

When Cramer decides to shut down the grill for the final time there will be several days of mourning. Flags will be at half-staff. The McFlurry machine might actually work for once in her honor. It would be a hell of a scene.

From the birth of the McNugget to Morgan Spurlock's bid to destroy McDonald's by proving that eating only fried food every day for a month will leave you feeling less-than-stellar, Barbara Cramer has seen it all. (Getty Images)

McDonald's Great Barbara Cramer Has Seen It All

Just think of all that Barbara Cramer has witnessed in her more than five decades behind the counter. She's seen the debut of menu stalwarts like McDouble and the McNugget. She's had to bid a tearful adieu to items of menus past like the MCDLT, the Big N' Tasty, and the Snack Wrap (which kicked ass, by the way) and been through more McRib cycles than she can count.

Barbara Cramer was right there for the debut of the shortlived/unsettlingly creepy mascot Mac Tonight. She was in the trenches fighting the good fight when hordes of children descended upon her restaurant on the hunt for Teenie Beanie Babies and when documentarian Morgan Spurlock tried to topple the entire McDonald's empire by documenting his epiphany that, yes, if you eat cheeseburgers, fries, and soda three times a day for a month you probably won't feel too well.

And finally — and perhaps most touchingly — Cramer has seen kids celebrate their birthdays in the restaurant's Play Place and then seen their kids do the same.

It's high time people who have devoted their lives to the service or retail industries get honored for their dedication. Let's not pretend that line of work is a cakewalk because it certainly isn't. Just ask anyone who has done it. It can be rough.

Congratulations on 53 years, Barbara (can I call you Barb?), here's to many more.

And yes, I would like fries with that, please.

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