The Doodlebug was built in response to a 1927 safety contest sponsored by the Daniel Guggenheim Fund for the Promotion of Aeronautics with a prize of $100,000.

The aircraft's tail folded upward in initial demonstrations at Mitchel Field in New York, and allowed more extensions to repair damages.

[2] After a forced landing due to engine failure, the Doodlebug missed the opportunity to be judged in the competition.

The forced landing caused McDonnell a back injury, but he still drove the aircraft to demonstrate in various air shows throughout the start of the Great Depression.

[3][4] In 1931 the Doodlebug was sold to the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) as a demonstrator for leading edge slats.