'Man Who Saved McDonald's' Has Died

John Jursich, a former resident of Deerfield who was known as the “right-hand man to Ray Kroc,” died Saturday from complications of myasthenia gravis, according to an online obituary from Kelley and Spalding Funeral Home and Crematory in Highland Park. He was 87.

An attorney and inventor, Jursich was responsible for what would later become the world’s largest fast food chain.

Jursich started with McDonald’s in 1958, when then-company president Harry Sonnenborn asked him to help with overextended contracts and building projects.

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“Jursich went to work renegotiating contracts and working with banks, unions and builders to avert what was soon to be a bankruptcy,” according to the obituary. “Responsible for single-handedly saving McDonald’s from filing a $2 million bankruptcy in 1958, Ray Kroc referred to John as ’The man who saved the company.’ ”

Soon after, he was named vice president of McDonald’s and developed relationships with banks and franchises nationwide. He was responsible for finding the real estate company behind the iconic McDonald’s arches.

As an attorney and inventor, Jursich created the Saber Plow and Ups-Daisy step ladder and was the longest standing member of the Chicago Bar Association.

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He established his own civil litigation practice and serviced an array of clients, including the disadvantaged and minorities, in Lake County, Illinois.

Jursich was preceded in death by his wife, Gloria and son, John Mark. He is survived by daughters Jane (Bill) Marshall Susan Paillassou and Steve Miller, and Amy Joe (Ted) Malone in addition to three grandsons and his brother, Robert.

Services are private.

Read his full obituary via Kelley and Spalding Funeral Home and Crematory