When the ol' Ses geared up in reverse ('Sesame Street' Wednesday)

It's been a damn long time since I've done this feature, but I've just found an old Sesame Street segment that I'd forgotten about for over 35 years, and can't resist analyzing it here!

Back in the '70s, Sesame Street was a forward-thinking show. But here's one sketch where it went backwards - literally! This segment taught kids the concept of backwards by showing a man in an Uncle Al hat and Colonel Sanders suit walking along city streets while everything around him moves in reverse. The music alone makes this segment worth watching...



The music in that skit is truly hard to beat! After hearing that music again, I remember a song that was briefly popular on the radio in the late '70s that sounded like this, and I remember calling it "The Backwards Song." The music was composed by Edd Kalehoff, who also wrote much of the music for The Price Is Right - making him a wealthy man indeed.

It must have been a barrel of laughs to film this segment. Clearly, the man was actually walking backwards in a crowded city, while everyone else was staring at him like he was some sort of weirdo.

Near the end of the clip, a sign in the background suggests it was filmed in Philadelphia.

The Sesame Street of old needs to come back with a vengeance!