The Player: After 50 years in business, McD's vet still looks ahead; Cooper, 86, has plans to add polish to Arches.(Max Cooper, McDonald's first advertising manager)(Brief Article)

Advertising Age, June, 2002 by Macarthur, Kate

While McDonald's Corp. searches the planet for a new global marketing chief, the burger titan's very first advertising manager has his own ideas for putting the sparkle back in the Golden Arches.

``Everybody's looking for the next magic sandwich, but it doesn't exist,'' said Max Cooper, the 86-year-old franchisee of 45 stores in greater Birmingham, Ala. ``It's very difficult to create a sandwich today like we did with the Big Mac. Not one that will blow people away and give you 10% of your business.''

Mr. Cooper believes the company has to get back to mastering the basics. ``The core menu is what really keeps the business going, and if delivered properly ... that's the driving force and it will continue to be that,'' he said.

Even as...