Sesame Street - Sign Alphabet

[acsmooth110]

I have been thinking about this clip from Sesame Street and the music. I always like that tune along with the child saying the alphabet. Will put in my favorites.

Alan

[alexTM7876]

NOSTALGIA FTW!

[YNVRKNW]

Liked the part when they got to use one of the letters off of a license plate, very cool!!!! :)

[aeromaximon]

I was in primary school the last time I saw this. It then got replaced by a more modern one.

[ShadesBelow03]

I *think* the telephone booth for "T" is one of a row of them that you see in "Midnight Cowboy", during the scene where Joe and Ratso are walking down the street (after they hook up again), and Ratso is fishing in the coin-slots for loose change while Joe is offering him money.

[PimpThe478]

So peaceful makes me feel like I'm going through dreamland.

[HiBye533]

D is for DRUGS LOL.

[bwork66]

WOW!!! N.Y.C. from a bygone era.I nearly remember all of it! I sure miss the "mid" late 20th century : (

[stevedogan]

I wonder if anyone can make a clip of this backwards. I LOVVVVVVVE to rattle the alphabet off backwards to people to see what response I get. It'id be neat to see it on here!

ZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA. Then, to REALLY get people's heads spinning, I'll alternate back and forth: AZBYCXDWEVFUGTHSIRJQKPLOMN  :)

[Quen047]

This was my favorite as a kid. Thanks for posting this!

[Steven197981]

A vintage "DEAD END STREET" sign at 0:19. Nice! There are only a handful that still exist in New York City today. I also noticed a vintage pedestrian signal at 1:42. Nice!

[ruleta74835]

@Steven197981 - Cool, I don't remember the DEAD END STREET signs.

[djwood1672]

The kid doing the alphabet has a thick East Coast accent. The music is dope too. Brings back memories!

[openroad88]

H is surely engangered.

[wyecee]

They could have used the "Y" from "RADIO CITY" if it was around then instead of a license plate. You probably couldn't trace information from a 1970 plate now.

[openroad88]

@wyecee I think they were getting tired by letter #25 and just thought, heck with it, let's just find a license plate.

[wyecee]

@openroad88 I wonder if any of these same letters from those buildings still exist all original from 1970.

[openroad88]

with arrangements as good as this one (song), you don't even need words. The atmosphere and instruments make the song.

[bototgus]

I remember in Fall 69 going to my friends house, him saying hey there's this cool new show called sesame seed, come watch. I watched for awhile, saw an "h" turn into a chair then grow feet and walk away. For some reason that tickled my funny bone as a 7 year old child.

[bototgus]

This was one of my favorite segments. Fascinating to watch all the letters in different contexts. Must be from one of the first shows in Fall 69. The letter Y theres a car with autumn leaves on it and plate expiry in 2/70.

[artnstories]

I always loved this part when I watched the Sesame Street ABCs movie as a kid!

[everythingeli]

abc

[PinkChocolat07]

@ the letter "v"---whoo hoo, a color tv!

[PinkChocolat07]

There's something about that music that I like.

[Akira625]

@PinkChocolat07 Maybe it's because Joe Raposo composed it! :)

[redfox409]

Who is stupid enough to show their car lisence plate on tv? Don't they know how much info you can get on a person?

[TheLonersManual]

@redfox409 Oh no! They can get your name and address! And from their they can get your criminal background and maybe a few other things :O Oh no! Relax man, this was in the 70's when identity theft was not nearly as big a problem as it is today. Then there is the fact that it is a license plate! Anyone can see your license plate number! Go outside right now and you will see several! It is a license plate number not a social security number. lol

[RJSchex]

@redfox409 These days, it's almost impossible to get information from plate numbers. In 1994, Congress passed the Driver Privacy Protection Act, which bans state DMV's from releasing personally identifiable information to the general public. The law stemmed from the 1989 murder of actress Rebecca Scheaffer; her stalker got her home address from California Department of Motor Vehicles.

As for the 1970 New York plate depicted here—those were all removed and replaced during 1973.

[Brinah]

@RJSchex wow..i didn't know that! :(

[DarkBlueKnight31]

Oh boy!, do I really remember this classic piece of vintage nostolgia! Reminds me when I was a litte kid and my cousin Frankie when he was living on Lincoln Ave in Brooklyn!

[PimpThe478]

I remember seeing this at age 4 or 3.

[gshow1970]

the new york plate 1970 wow

[royalspin]

how about D  for dog instead of drugs ?

[chandler06]

remember this is in new york 70's and 80's, lol

[RoseyGirl1976]

Seattle! :)

[Prop]

Does ANYONE know where we, I say we because we would all want this, can find this and other Joe Raposo tunes?

[Prawnlet]

lol d for drugs

[pannoni1]

And since 2002 all crossing signs have the Hand/Man configuration, no more walk. For "T", there's only one telephone booth left on West End Avenue. I also like vintage Sesame Street just for the vintage NYC clips.

[444kingtuts]

I was just kidding I do not know when this clip came out.But I know I've been seeing ever since I've been watching sesame street.

[444kingtuts]

This was recorded in september 1969 three months before sesame street started in nov 1969.

[444kingtuts]

I remember seeing this since I was very young this has to be 35+ years old.

[jtomally9681]

Oh man. So long ago.

[redfox409]

Ok everyone here is a good challenge for all of you. Without givving me the common animals, (exsamples) ant beat dat dog, Think of some not everyday animals said starting with each letter.

[redfox409]

catchy music!!

[BonzoGal1980]

Sad part is now those Con Ed manhole covers also include "Made In India"

[katastrephein]

Wow, I had forgotten all about this one. Thanks for the upload!

[superdonutyummyman]

do you know that on the letter D on the sign it says drugs

[antmfan217]

Uh, its a drug store o_O, as in a pharmacy. It also says cosmetics.

[Akira625]

I remember being quite fascinated by this clip as a child. Seeing each letter in completely different styles was kinda cool to my young eyes.

And that jazzy score... like buttah!

[jhillst]

This is probably my favorite of all Raposo's instrumentals. I was a percussionist back in my high school wind ensemble, and I used to play this song all the time on the vibraphone...people would say, "Where is that song from? That sounds so familiar!"

[openroad88]

@jhillst What is the name of this instrumental? Where can I find it?

[traydogwoof]

I'm lovin' this! Thanks so much to the poster. I've been searching for a clip of this for awhile now.

[Glasdrache]

D for Drugs! lol

[smoothie6ft3]

Joe Raposo made the phattest jams for any kids program ever created.His death in 89 was a tremendous loss.

[toastichedu]

I wonder if AC+AW ended up getting married?

[Kevmike68]

This is one of my earliest memories from Sesame Street....thanks for the great memory! Must be from the first season (?)

Best Wishes!

[RJSchex]

Sounds right to me. Notice the license plate ("Y"), which has a February, 1970 validation decal.  That means it was (most likely) shot in the window of February, 1969 to February, 1970.

[kimsy520]

YES!!!! I remember seeing this a very long time ago; I've been looking for this for years! I love the background music.

Thank you!!!!!

[Jewcygrl]

I love seeing all of the vintage NY street signs - (that actually haven't changed much at all0

[ghostchantxx]

A John and a Tracy ?

[tmsan74]

i remember watching this brings back memories.

thanks for posting!

[Kapricorn1]

Oh happy memories, I loved this clip when I was little (I'm now 35 nearly 36) and I love it now, dig the music as well.

[desiredusername]

Music reminds me of The Price is Right from the same era.

[BHoz77]

Wow, I haven't seen ths clip in years. You can tell where almost all the letters came from (i.e. B-bookstore, C-manhole cover)but I haven't a clue as to where that seemingly random "F" is from. Also, I can't help but wonder if AC and AW are still in love, or if John and (presumably) Tracy are still a couple.

[kattaclysm]

The F is the cover to a foundary drain. Not sure which state.

[lion371]

I REMEMBER THIS.

[Figure2006]

well its very cool that after seeing noggin so much and growing up with sesame street, i always loved the music that it showed, and thanks wattamack

[cosmowanda868]

I certainly remember this; it was great to see all 26 letters in the alphabet in various spots all over Brooklyn. They sure did a lot of filming all over New York City back in those days...

[AlbieGray]

Makes me miss NYC all the more, and all the more intent to get back there to the city and live out my life there!

[jykds]

Thanks for the repost, a true marriage of sight & sound.

[elyseshearer]

i love this music

[nirrad0791]

me too

[shyguy76]

i love watching this simply because when I look at all the old signs on drug stores and restaurants, it makes today's big corporate signs and logos look so fake. I dunno, guess i'm old fashioned in that sense.

[nirrad0791]

i wish they had signs like this again

[powerpuffsouthpark]

How can one take in the sights of New York City AND learn the alphabet in the same move? This skit - which is one of my babyhood favorites - just demonstrated how!

[2bin]

I wish "they" would release all of the old-school tracks from these segments, Raposo, or otherwise. Better yet, if there is a DJ out there willing to make a mix of all the funky, moogy tunes from Sesame Street, I'd buy it!

[2bin]

Thank you for the repost. This is my absolute favorite Sesame Street clip, specifically for the jazzy music and the urban atmosphere - a perfect combination. Growing up in the Midwest, I was fascinated by the setting because we didn't have anything like that. Even today, I am still attracted to the grit of the big city and I love jazz.

[Brinah]

We all know the that 'S' for Stop exists today! lol

[lion371]

I know some new animals for the letter u an v uganda kob and vogelkop bowerbird.

[lion371]

i impala jabiru

[lion371]

left out h hyrax. my mistake ;0)

[scottof83]

The word Drugs appears on Sesame Street. You wouldn't see that today.

[rockintetster]

Great, great music in this one. Like the poly rhythyms in this - 3,3,2 then 3,3,2 then 4 -cool!

the flute and glockenspeil unison was a sesame street trademark!

[raposofan]

Agreed, RR!

[lion371]

agouti bustard cassowary dhole eland fenec fox gelada hyrax impala jackal kinkajou lemming markhor newt okapi peccary quokka rhea secretary bird tapir urial vicuna woodcock xerus yapok zander

[lion371]

Does anyone want some animals, Some you may not know about for each letter?

[mokeystar]

Well, after doing a little research, I've learned that the "H" for the Franklin Arms Hotel might still exist. It is (or was) in Brooklyn at 66 Orange Street.

[MIKECNW]

Wonder if the building with the H still exists?

[mokeystar]

When you're in NYC, you can actually visit one of the original letters to this day! The "Z" at the end is still seen at the Central Park Zoo. It's the same exact "Z" that you see here, 30 some years later. It's probably one of the only letters from this clip that has an easily idenifiable location and still exists.

[Ziffel67]

Yeah I loved the music in this one too, as I did with so many vintage SS music and songs.

I always loved how the boy said the letters f, s, and x with emphasis. He must have enjoyed doing that with letters that begin with an "eh" sound.

And notice when he says "y" the registration sticker on the license plate says 2-70.

[srf1969]

These were old signs used in the old days. My favorite sign was the red "W" in "Don't Walk" but now, they use a man for a crosswalk instead of the words!!!

[ruleta74835]

@srf1969 - That signal goes back a couple of design generations. Before they started using the icons of the man and hand icons , you had DONT WALK and WALK in separate compartments one above the other, but the signal in this film is from an even older design, where it simply has a DONT and a WALK, and the indication changed by using colored bulbs. I happen to have one of these on display in our den.

Some other designs used neon tubes. The very oldest ped signals displayed WAIT and WALK.

[mokeystar]

My favorite Raposo tune! When I was in New York City, I couldn't get this tune out of my head.

Has anyone seen the clip that's similar to this, where they zoomed in on letters around the city? It was filmed in Seattle during the 90s.

[phatalbert73]

Love the jazzy music on this one.

[1f5sda]

At 0:37-0:41 you can tell that the "I" is on a fire station with the word engine. We see the word ENGINE briefly.

[ISNorden]

Yay, another great childhood memory preserved...five stars!

[MIKECNW]

I said this when this clip was up the 1st time around but I thought I'd repeat it again.

Notice in the X piece you can see the arm of the camera man just as the piece was ending.