A BIG, Big Mac habit

FOND DU LAC, Wisconsin (CNN) -- After nearly 15,000 Big Macs, Don Gorske says he's not interested in records, just his favorite meal.

He suffered his first Big Mac attack 25 years ago. As of Saturday, Gorske put his Big Mac tally at 14,837, and counting.

"I just eat these because I love them," he says. "I really look forward to Big Macs."

Gorske started keeping count when he drove his first car to McDonald's when he was 17. Over the years, he's cut back from around nine to just two per day.

He met his wife, Mary, "somewhere around 1,500 Big Macs" in September 1973. Three years later, he proposed to her -- in a McDonald's parking lot. He calmed jitters before walking down the aisle that December with -- what else -- his comfort food.

He estimates he has eaten nearly 3,000 pounds of ground beef patties, 6 million sesame seeds, hundreds of heads of lettuce and more than 29,000 pickle slices -- the ingredients for the fast-food restaurant chain's trademark sandwich.

Big Macs sold for 49 cents in 1972. Two of them, Gorske's standard order, now cost $3.97 with tax. Gorske has likely spent about $50,000 on Big Macs.

"What I eat at McDonald's, I don't spend on groceries," he maintains.

In the past 15 years, Gorske says he has only missed seven days of Big Macs. Reasons include his mother's death, a snowstorm, and a 600-mile drive devoid of a McDonald's. But Gorske prepares for such emergencies these days: He buys extra Big Macs and freezes them.

Sound off on our message boards Tell us what you think! You said it...

© 1997 Cable News Network, Inc.
All Rights Reserved.

Terms under which this service is provided to you.