FREMONT, Calif. -- Al Bernardin, inventor of the McDonald's Quarter Pounder, has died of a stroke, according to a report by The Chicago Tribune. He was 81.
Bernardin, a native of Lawrence, Mass., went to work at McDonald's corporate headquarters in 1960 and quickly rose to dean of Hamburger University, McDonald's training center, said the report.
Later, as vice president of product development, he played a major role in the formation of McDonald's signature fish sandwich, french fries, and hot apple and cherry pies.
But Bernardin's claim to fame came [image-nocss] in 1971, when, as a franchise owner in Fremont, Calif., he introduced the Quarter Pounder, with the prophetic slogan, "Today Fremont, tomorrow the world."
"I felt there was a void in our menu vis-a-vis the adult who wanted a higher ratio of meat to bun," he said in 1991, according to the report.
Mark Bernardin said his father's other important contribution to fast-food fare is the frozen french fry.
Bernardin moved to Fremont in 1970 after buying two company-owned franchises. At the height of his success, he owned nine franchises and became a philanthropist, the report said.
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