So was Lefty suppose to be a drug dealer spoof?

[beaker]

Ever since the early 80's I always felt Lefty seemed like he was suppose to be a spoof or archtype of a drug dealer; especially since Sesame Street was modeled after New York's inner city/ghetto.

 

[D'Snowth]

Uh... no. He's pretty much a caricature of a shifty salesman, or a hustler: just a guy wearing a trenchcoat full of various different hot (as in stolen) goods to try and sell to unsuspecting people to make a quick buck. Remember the bum in GMC who just walks onto the movie and tries to sell Kermit a watch (but not before he tries to figure out Kermit's life story)? That's pretty much the kind of character Lefty is. In fact, his name alone is a jab... I forget, you watch M*A*S*H too, right? Colonel Potter lectured about this in one episode where Michael Bell played a chopper pilot who kept scrounging, hustling, and selling war souvenirs (which was injuring Korean children who were bringing him this junk), and even mentioned in his speech about military personnel who end up getting mixed up in buying and selling such souvenirs, adding, "The next thing you know, his nickname is Lefty."

 

[Mary Louise]

Lefty was one of my favorite characters on Sesame Street. I recently found this clip of him. Does anyone have any idea what the English words might be?