History JustForFun / JohnMunch

* ''Series/SesameStreet'' has the skit, "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5121VjLwqZM Special Letters Unit]]", a spoof of ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'', is the one time the character is not played by Richard Belzer. This puppet returns in {{Elmopalooza}} as the 'Richard Belzer stunt puppet', accompanied by Belzer himself.

* ''Series/SesameStreet'' (the skit, "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5121VjLwqZM Special Letters Unit]]", a spoof of ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'', is the one time the character is not played by Richard Belzer. This puppet returns in {{Elmopalooza}} as the 'Richard Belzer stunt puppet', accompanied by Belzer himself.

What we have here is a small, semi-just-for-fun page to the character with the single most appearances outside his own series this side of a PublicDomainCharacter, making him the king of the IntercontinuityCrossover. A police detective originally based in [[Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet Baltimore]] and later in [[Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit New York]], in every appearance Munch is portrayed by Creator/RichardBelzer, who outside of this role is [[TomHanksSyndrome better known as a stand-up comedian]]. When he left ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'' early in its 15th season, Belzer had played Munch for 21 years and for 22 consecutive seasons as a regular on two different shows (along with [[TheCameo cameos]] and [[CrossOver crossover appearances]] on 8 others), making him the character who ran longest as a regular on TV, beating out Kelsey Grammer as Frasier Crane (on ''Series/{{Cheers}}'' and ''Series/{{Frasier}}''), James Arness as Matt Dillon and Milburn Stone as Doc Adams (both of ''Series/{{Gunsmoke}}'') as [[LongRunners American television's longest running live action character.]] Munch's departure was explained in-show as his retirement from the NYPD, but he has made occasional appearances since then.

What we have here is a small, semi-just-for-fun page to the character with the single most appearances outside his own series this side of a PublicDomainCharacter, making him the king of the IntercontinuityCrossover. A police detective originally based in [[Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet Baltimore]] and later in [[Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit New York]], in every appearance Munch is portrayed by Creator/RichardBelzer, who outside of this role is [[TomHanksSyndrome better known as a stand-up comedian]]. When he left ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'' early in its 15th season, Belzer had played Munch for 21 years and for 22 consecutive seasons as a regular on two different shows (along with [[TheCameo cameos]] and [[CrossOver crossover appearances]] on 8 others), making him the character who ran longest as a regular on TV, beating out Kelsey Grammer as Frasier Crane (on ''Series/{{Cheers}}'' and ''Series/{{Frasier}}''), James Arness as Matt Dillon and Milburn Stone as Doc Adams (both of ''Series/{{Gunsmoke}}'') as [[LongRunners American television's longest running live action character.]]

What we have here is a small, semi-just-for-fun page to the character with the single most appearances outside his own series this side of a PublicDomainCharacter, making him the king of the IntercontinuityCrossover. A police detective originally based in [[Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet Baltimore]] and later in [[Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit New York]], in every appearance Munch is portrayed by Creator/RichardBelzer, who outside of this role is [[TomHanksSyndrome better known as a stand-up comedian]]. After leaving at the end of the 15th season of ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'', Belzer had played Munch for 21 years and for 22 consecutive seasons as a regular on two different shows (along with [[TheCameo cameos]] and [[CrossOver crossover appearances]] on 8 others), making him the character who ran longest as a regular on TV, beating out Kelsey Grammer as Frasier Crane (on ''Series/{{Cheers}}'' and ''Series/{{Frasier}}''), James Arness as Matt Dillon and Milburn Stone as Doc Adams (both of ''Series/{{Gunsmoke}}'') as [[LongRunners American television's longest running live action character.]]

* ''Series/LawAndOrderTrialByJury'': He appears in one scene of an episode that was already a crossover with [[LawAndOrder The Mothership]], passing on some investigation details.

* An unnamed late-1980s Baltimore Homicide detective who is clearly John Munch appears in one of the short stories in Creator/KimNewman's ''Literature/JohnnyAlucard'', along with another unnamed late-1980s Baltimore Homicide detective who is clearly Meldrick Lewis from ''Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet''.

* Pete Munch, supposedly John's father, is an astronaut who appears in the "Minions of the Moon" backup in ''TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen Vol. III, Century: 1969''. Like John, he is a conspiracy theorist, but since this is the world of the League, he's actually probably right about most of his ramblings.

* An unnamed late-1980s Baltimore Homicide detective who is clearly John Munch appears in one of the short stories in Creator/KimNewman's ''Literature/AnnoDracula: Johnny Alucard'', along with another unnamed late-1980s Baltimore Homicide detective who is clearly Meldrick Lewis from ''Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet''.

* ''Series/TheWire'' (ironically, former Baltimore Police Department detective Jay Landsman, the real-life inspiration for Munch, plays a recurring role). It should also be pointed out that Landsman, playing Lieutenant Mello, was actually in the scene. As was Clark Johnson, formerly Munch's fellow ''[[HomicideLifeOnTheStreet Homicide]]'' castmate. If that's not enough, ''Series/TheWire'' has a character named Jay Landsman who was also inspired by the real Jay Landsman, and was played by yet a third actor. One rather suspects that Creator/DavidSimon was having a particularly {{Mind Screw}}y field day with this one.

* ''Series/TheXFiles'' - As the Baltimore cop interrogating the future [[TheLoneGunmen Lone Gunmen]]. There's also a hilarious scene in SVU where a reporter refers to Munch and Novak as Mulder and Scully. Not only that but in one episode of ''Homicide'', Munch mentions that a character is probably watching ''The X-Files''.

* In an episode of ''[[Series/ThirtyRock 30 Rock]]'', Belzer and Ice-T show up as their L&O:SVU characters for a joke. It's more than just an incidental cameo because it's clearly not a real episode of SVU.

* ''SesameStreet'' (the skit, "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5121VjLwqZM Special Letters Unit]]", a spoof of ''LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'', is the one time the character is not played by Richard Belzer. This puppet returns in {{Elmopalooza}} as the 'Richard Belzer stunt puppet', accompanied by Belzer himself.

What we have here is a small, semi-just-for-fun page to the character with the single most appearances outside his own series this side of a PublicDomainCharacter, making him the king of the IntercontinuityCrossover. A police detective originally based in [[Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet Baltimore]] and later in [[Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit New York]], in every appearance Munch is portrayed by Creator/RichardBelzer, who outside of this role is [[TomHanksSyndrome better known as a stand-up comedian]]. At the end of the 13th (and current) season of ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'' Belzer will have played Munch for 19 years and 20 consecutive seasons as a regular on two different shows (along with [[TheCameo cameos]] and [[CrossOver crossover appearances]] on 8 others) which has him tied (though technically one year behind chronologically as the first season of ''Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet'' premiered mid season) with Kelsey Grammer as Frasier Crane (on ''Series/{{Cheers}}'' and ''Series/{{Frasier}}''), James Arness as Matt Dillon and Milburn Stone as Doc Adams (both of ''Series/{{Gunsmoke}}'') as [[LongRunners American television's longest running live action character.]] As of Law and Order SVU's Wonderland Story(S15,E5), he has retired from the Police force, marking the first time in over twenty years he has not had a starring role, although he will be staying on in a recurring role.

* An unnamed late-1980s Baltimore Homicide detective who is clearly John Munch appears in one of the short stories in Creator/KimNewman's ''Literature/AnnoDracula: Johnny Alucard'', along with another unnamed late-1980s Baltimore Homicide detective who is clearly Meldrick Lewis from ''Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet'' (as played by Clark Johnson).

* An unnamed late-1980s Baltimore Homicide detective who is clearly John Munch appears in one of the short stories in Creator/KimNewman's ''Literature/AnnoDracula: Johnny Alucard'', along with another unnamed late-1980s Baltimore Homicide detective who is clearly Meldrick Lewis (as played by Clark Johnson).

What we have here is a small, semi-just-for-fun page to the character with the single most appearances outside his own series this side of a PublicDomainCharacter, making him the king of the IntercontinuityCrossover. In every appearance, Munch is portrayed by Creator/RichardBelzer, who outside of this role is [[TomHanksSyndrome better known as a stand-up comedian]]. At the end of the 13th (and current) season of ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'' Belzer will have played Munch for 19 years and 20 consecutive seasons as a regular on two different shows (along with [[TheCameo cameos]] and [[CrossOver crossover appearances]] on 8 others) which has him tied (though technically one year behind chronologically as the first season of ''Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet'' premiered mid season) with Kelsey Grammer as Frasier Crane (on ''Series/{{Cheers}}'' and ''Series/{{Frasier}}''), James Arness as Matt Dillon and Milburn Stone as Doc Adams (both of ''Series/{{Gunsmoke}}'') as [[LongRunners American television's longest running live action character.]] As of Law and Order SVU's Wonderland Story(S15,E5), he has retired from the Police force, marking the first time in over twenty years he has not had a starring role, although he will be staying on in a recurring role.

* And then there's the character's appearance in the French version of ''LawAndOrderCriminalIntent'', which is what tipped the character into a trope-on-his-own territory.

* ''Series/LawAndOrderTrialByJury''

* London police drama ''Series/{{Luther}}'': "Send the details to Detective Munch in Special Victims Unit, New York." [[CelebrityParadox Munch might get a surprise]] if he met the eponymous British cop face to face though, since he's the absolute ''spit'' of Stringer Bell from ''Series/TheWire''...

What we have here is a small, semi-just-for-fun page to the character with the single most appearances outside his own series this side of a PublicDomainCharacter, making him the king of the IntercontinuityCrossover. In every appearance, Munch is portrayed by Creator/RichardBelzer, who outside of this role is [[TomHanksSyndrome better known as a stand-up comedian]]. At the end of the 13th (and current) season of ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'' Belzer will have played Munch for 19 years and 20 consecutive seasons as a regular on two different shows (along with [[TheCameo cameos]] and [[CrossOver crossover appearances]] on 8 others) which has him tied (though technically one year behind chronologically as the first season of ''Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet'' premiered mid season) with Kelsey Grammer as Frasier Crane (on ''Series/{{Cheers}}'' and ''Series/{{Frasier}}''), James Arness as Matt Dillon and Milburn Stone as Doc Adams (both of ''Series/{{Gunsmoke}}'') as [[LongRunners American television's longest running live action character.]]

* ''TheWire'' (ironically, former Baltimore Police Department detective Jay Landsman, the real-life inspiration for Munch, plays a recurring role). It should also be pointed out that Landsman, playing Lieutenant Mello, was actually in the scene. As was Clark Johnson, formerly Munch's fellow ''[[HomicideLifeOnTheStreet Homicide]]'' castmate. If that's not enough, ''TheWire'' has a character named Jay Landsman who was also inspired by the real Jay Landsman, and was played by yet a third actor. One rather suspects that Creator/DavidSimon was having a particularly {{Mind Screw}}y field day with this one.

* London police drama ''{{Luther}}'': "Send the details to Detective Munch in Special Victims Unit, New York." [[CelebrityParadox Munch might get a surprise]] if he met the eponymous British cop face to face though, since he's the absolute ''spit'' of Stringer Bell from ''TheWire''...

* ''Series/TheXFiles'' - As the Baltimore cop interrogating the future [[TheLoneGunmen Lone Gunmen]]. There's also a hilarious scene in SVU where a reporter refers to Munch and Novak as Mulder and Scully. So...
** Not only that but in one episode of ''Homicide'', Munch mentions that a character is probably watching ''The X-Files''.

* ''Series/LawAndOrder''
** Munch's appearance on the original Law and Order as part of a Homicide cross-over is partly what got him the job on SVU. Belzer originally pitched to Dick Wolf that Munch join Law and Order as Briscoe's new partner. The role had been filled, so Wolf transplanted Munch to SVU instead.

* ''TheWire'' (ironically, former Baltimore Police Department detective Jay Landsman, the real-life inspiration for Munch, plays a recurring role).
** It should also be pointed out that Landsman, playing Lieutenant Mello, was actually in the scene. As was Clark Johnson, formerly Munch's fellow ''[[HomicideLifeOnTheStreet Homicide]]'' castmate.
*** If that's not enough, ''TheWire'' has a character named Jay Landsman who was also inspired by the real Jay Landsman, and was played by yet a third actor. One rather suspects that Creator/DavidSimon was having a particularly {{Mind Screw}}y field day with this one.
* ''SesameStreet'' (the skit, "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5121VjLwqZM Special Letters Unit]]", a spoof of ''LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'', is the one time the character is not played by Richard Belzer.
** This puppet returns in {{Elmopalooza}} as the 'Richard Belzer stunt puppet', accompanied by Belzer himself.

* And he's now gotten a subtle ShoutOut in London police drama ''{{Luther}}'' -- "Send the details to Detective Munch in Special Victims Unit, New York." [[CelebrityParadox Munch might get a surprise]] if he met the eponymous British cop face to face though, since he's the absolute ''spit'' of Stringer Bell from ''TheWire''...
* In the book ''I Am Not A Cop'', by Richard Belzer, Richard Belzer is mistaken for John Munch, and asked to help solve a case.
** A joke book about [[StupidCrooks stupid criminals]] recounted a story about a robber who stumbled into a taping of ''Homicide'' and surrendered to John Munch.
*** Which is actually true. I heard it from the horse's mouth (well, in an interview with him on Youtube). However, the reports that he testified in court is just a rumour.

* Pete Munch, supposedly John's father, is an astronaut who appears in the "Minions of the Moon" backup in ''[[TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Vol. III, Century: 1969]]''. Like John he is a conspiracy theorist but since this is the world of the League, he's actually probably right about most of his ramblings.

What we have here is a small, semi-just-for-fun page to the character with the single most appearances outside his own series this side of a PublicDomainCharacter, making him the king of the IntercontinuityCrossover. In every appearance, Munch is portrayed by Creator/RichardBelzer, who outside of this role is [[TomHanksSyndrome better known as a stand-up comedian]]. At the end of the 13th (and current) season of ''LawAndOrderSVU'' Belzer will have played Munch for 19 years and 20 consecutive seasons as a regular on two different shows (along with [[TheCameo cameos]] and [[CrossOver crossover appearances]] on 8 others) which has him tied (though technically one year behind chronologically as the first season of ''Homicide'' premiered mid season) with Kelsey Grammer as Frasier Crane (on ''{{Cheers}}'' and ''{{Frasier}}''), James Arness as Matt Dillon and Milburn Stone as Doc Adams (both of ''{{Gunsmoke}}'') as [[LongRunners American television's longest running live action character.]]

*** If that's not enough, ''TheWire'' has a character named Jay Landsman who was also inspired by the real Jay Landsman, and was played by yet a third actor. One rather suspects that DavidSimon was having a particularly {{Mind Screw}}y field day with this one.

* ''HomicideLifeOnTheStreet''
* ''LawAndOrderSVU''

* ''TheXFiles'' - As the Baltimore cop interrogating the future [[TheLoneGunmen Lone Gunmen]]. There's also a hilarious scene in SVU where a reporter refers to Munch and Novak as Mulder and Scully. So...