Ray Kroc

Raymond Albert "Ray" Kroc (October 5, 1902 – January 14, 1984) was an American businessman. He joined then Californian chain McDonald's in 1954 and built it into a nationwide and eventually global franchise, making it the most successful fast food corporation in the world. Controversially, Kroc would present himself as the founder of McDonald's during his later life. Kroc was included in Time 100: The Most Important People of the Century, and amassed a fortune during his lifetime. He owned the San Diego Padres baseball team from 1974 until his death in 1984. 2Early life Kroc was born on October 5, 1902 in Oak Park, Illinois, near Chicago, to parents of Czech origin, Rose Mary (Hrach) and Alois "Louis" Kroc. His father was from the village of Břasy near Plzeň, Bohemia (now the Czech Republic). The elder Kroc had made a fortune speculating on land during the 1920s, only to lose everything with the stock market crash in 1929. He grew up and spent most of his life in Oak Park. During World War I, he lied about his age and became a Red Cross ambulance driver at 15, the war however, ended shortly afte