Last Updated on 09/03/2018 by Mark Beckenbach
Fans of McDonald’s, Polaroid, and all things cameras and vintage: you might want to add this gem to your collection.
Polaroid was one of those camera makers that often churned out one-of-a-kind editions that sent (and still do, actually) collectors in a frenzy. If you’re one of them and you happen to have $1,500 to spare, our latest find might interest you.
Dr. Frakenroid on eBay has gotten ahold of a Polaroid Protoype “Ronald Camera” PhotoMagic Sun600 and is selling it for the Buy It Now price of US $1,500. According to the seller, this item “was custom ordered and built by the Polaroid design team in Cambridge, Massachusetts” and “was a gift in 1992 from the McDonald’s Corporation Sales Development Manager as a potential marketing tool that could be reproduced for other locations.”
It’s also in “brand new, unused condition” and comes with all the paperwork and letters that prove its authenticity, as well as “the original sticker on the bottom signifying this camera as a prototype and the case has an additional sticker signifying this as a prototype camera system.”
In addition:
Given the huge success and global reach of both McDonald’s Corporation and Polaroid Corporation, this is a very rare and desirable display piece. In fact, it is museum quality. The “Ronald Camera” is incredible and you will not be disappointed.
This rare PROTOTYPE functions without flaw. The case contains the original button cutter with original strap, button making kit in unused condition and hard case shoulder strap in new unused condition. Certain to be the pride of any Polaroid, McDonald’s or Vintage Marketing collection.
The camera’s design is a standout. As you can see, it features an image of a smiley Ronald McDonald with a blue top hat on and, frankly speaking, it might be a little unsettling for a future subject who may not be a fan of clowns.
But you’d be happy to know the camera is being sold for a noble cause, with 10% of the profit benefiting St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. So be sure to swing by eBay now to check this item out yourself.
All images by Dr. Frankenroid on eBay.