History Main / CoatfullOfContraband

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Robots}}'' played with this, where a shady robot asks Rodney if he wants to buy a watch. The watches then say "don't buy us, we're fakes!"

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheManCalledFlintstone'', Fred, getting desperate to buy Wilma a present, purchases a bootleg necklace from one such man for a quarter. Said necklace comes in handy later when Fred [[spoiler:uses it as bait to lure the Green Goose into his missile, trapping the Green Goose and his henchmen in it as it launches into space.]]
* Implied in ''WesternAnimation/OliverAndCompany''. Whenever Fagin checks the time, he's revealed to be wearing a line of watches down his arm.

* There's an illegal tomato dealer in ''Film/ReturnOfTheKillerTomatoes'' who pulls his wares out of the lining of his trenchcoat in this manner.
* Happens in ''Film/{{Jumper}}'', somewhat ludicrously. The main character walks down a New York street particularly noted for these sort of dealers in search of a fake driver's license, and he's offered everything, from watches to ''children'', but it turns out at least some or most are meant to ambush and rob the buyer.
* In the film version of ''[[Film/IvanVasilievichChangesProfession Ivan Vasilievich Changes Profession (a.k.a. Ivan Vasilievich: Back to the Future)]]'' there's a guy selling electronic parts that way, coat and all. Which is totally justified. In USSR, electronic parts were not outlawed, but private trade was. And the only reason Shurik even buys from the guy is because it's lunchtime, and all the electronic stores in the neighborhood are closed.

* ''Film/TheBraveOne'' plays it for realism. Creator/JodieFoster's character goes to buy a gun, but is told there's a thirty day waiting limit after getting a license. A customer notices her look of desperation and approaches her outside the store, offering a pistol for a thousand dollars. Rather than carry an illegal handgun in New York City, he takes her to a back alley and has her wait while he fetches the handgun, throwing in a box of ammunition and impromptu instruction on how to use it. Unlike the Easy Andy scene mentioned above, there's a noticeable lack of GunPorn.
* ''Film/LeBal'': In 1946 Paris (a time of shortages and rationing after the war), a guy with a coat full of contraband is selling stuff in a fancy nightclub. He sells cartons of cigarettes to the washroom attendant.

* The cover of the December 1994 issue of ''Spy Magazine'' featured a Photoshopped image of then-President Bill Clinton selling a watch, Spam, a Cadillac hood ornament, a drink from Subway, and other items from inside his trench coat. Writers for the magazine pretended to represent Clinton, and called various companies stating that the President wanted to do product endorsements. They strung along the companies that said yes.

* On ''Series/SesameStreet'', a green Anything Muppet guy (sometimes identified as Lefty) keeps approaching Ernie with offers to sell him letters of the alphabet, among other things. The most famous short is called "Would You Like to Buy an 'O'?"
* ''Series/{{Lost}}'' has Sawyer doing stuff like this (with necklaces).

* In the ''Series/SmallWonder'' episode "The Hustle", a street vendor calling himself Discount Eddie tricks Jamie into buying a portable TV set that doesn't work properly. Later, Ted confronts Eddie and is sold what appears to be a fur stole.
* In an episode of ''Series/ParkerLewisCantLose'', a guy presents a selection of portable video games to Jerry Steiner.

* ''Series/{{MASH}}'':
** A first-season episode has Hawkeye and Trapper dealing with black-marketeers for some stolen medicine. When one of them is questioned by Frank Burns, he hikes up a pant leg to show a dozen watches arrayed on his shin and offers to sell him one.
** A Korean peddler played by Richard Lee-Sung appears in several episodes, selling dubious products like watches that run backwards and Hitler's pencil case.

* In Harry the Hat's first appearance in the ''Series/{{Cheers}}'' episode "Sam at Eleven", Sam orders Harry to leave the bar, giving him ten seconds - and realising as he looks as his empty wrist that Harry has stolen his watch. Harry returns the purloined timepiece, but opens his coat to reveal numerous watches and asks if Sam wants to upgrade - which just gets him a more forceful order to leave the bar.
* ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries''. Although Cyrano Jones is not breaking the law (as he takes pains to point out) we see him take gems, bottles of perfume and of course [[Recap/StarTrekS2E15TheTroubleWithTribbles tribbles]] from his coat of many pockets.

* In one of Creator/CheechAndChong's "Pedro & the Man" skits, the duo are approached in their stalled car by a Harlem youth offering them a watch, a transistor radio and a diamond ring.
-->'''Youth''': Check it out, only real diamonds can cut glass!\\
'''Pedro''': Hey, look what you did to my windshield, man!

* The video for Music/WeirdAlYankovic's ''White and Nerdy'' had him buying ''Film/TheStarWarsHolidaySpecial'' from such a vendor.

[[folder:Comic Strips]]
* Clyde, the closest thing that ''ComicStrip/{{Candorville}}'' has to a stereotypical black male, is often found selling these. On one occasion he used a similar approach to sell something highly secret--the main character thought it was drugs, but it turned out to be videos that were GuiltyPleasures.
* ''ComicStrip/TheFarSide'':
** "Hey, buddy.... You wanna buy a hoofed mammal?" WordOfGod says it was originally going to be "wanna buy an ungulate?" but he erred on the side of ViewersAreMorons.
** Another one had a caveman in an overcoat, showing another caveman a campfire.
* A RunningGag in ''ComicStrip/TheWizardOfId'''s early days had one of these guys scamming Sir Rodney with items that were [[ExactWords always exactly what he'd said they were]], but naturally, never what he'd ''implied'' ("racy French postcards" that turned out to be of [[AnachronismStew the Tour De France]], for example).
* ''ComicStrip/{{Garfield}}'':
** The title character once (May 9, 1980) declared his intention to go into the business of "black-market kittens", complete with a trenchcoat with Nermal hanging inside. [[FridgeLogic Never you mind where he got it]].
** Jon buys a bad suit from one of these dealers in the February 13, 1997 strip.
** In a variant, the July 12, 2000 strip has Garfield ask Jon "Wanna buy a watch?" But instead of in a coat, they're around Odie's tongue.
[[/folder]]

* Ray in the ''VideoGame/FreddiFish'' games, who's pretty much HonestJohnsDealership without the dealership, sells these most of the time. Since this is a kids' series, it's never explained what's so dodgy about his merchandise.

* The Sleazy Guy in ''VideoGame/{{Discworld}}'' sells hourglasses. When Rincewind asks where he got them from, he replies "fell off the back of a donkey cart".

* The Spiv in ''VideoGame/MediEvil2'' sells you ammunition and other resources. When you interact with him, the camera zooms in so the store menu appears to be inside his coat.
* In ''VideoGame/RatchetAndClank2002'', the RYNO Salesman apparently kept the RYNO in there, although we don't actually see it there. He only tells Ratchet it was there after he buys it.
--> '''Ratchet:''' Urgh, this thing is heavy!
--> '''RYNO Salesman:''' Yeah, try carrying it around in your trenchcoat for 2 months.

* In the Vegas Strip in ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'' there's a shady-looking guy with a long coat hanging out near one of the casinos. If you approach him, he reveals that he's selling concealable weapons like knives and pistols for people who want to avoid having to go into the casinos completely unarmed, presumably carrying them under his coat.

* ''WebAnimation/HomestarRunner'': The WebAnimation/StrongBadEmail "licensed" has Strong Bad explaining how he and The Cheat have lent their likenesses to "officially licensed unlicensed merchandise" that is required to be sold out of a trench-coat or off a blanket. Bubs, an ''unlicensed'' unlicensed seller, is selling this way ("I'm a public flasher!" "Yeah, right, you ain't got no nudity under there!"), but his goods are actually of a higher quality than what he sells at the concession stand.
-->'''Strong Bad:''' So wait a minute...your shady bootleg operation peddles quality goods, while your legal storefront sells dangerous crap?!\\
'''Bubs:''' Exactly! I got a rep-uh-tation to uphold!

* One ''WesternAnimation/WheresWaldo'' illustration in a train station or airport shows (among many other things) a group of smugglers arrested, one carrying watches in his coat.

* The Hustler Kid from ''WesternAnimation/{{Recess}}'' normally has a coat full of toys, junk food and other contraband he tries to unload on the other kids.

The merchandise may have [[FellOffTheBackOfATruck fallen off the back of a truck]]. The shady seller may be HonestJohn. In places where UsefulNotes/{{Pornography}} is illegal, this can be the guy you go to see to fill your PornStash.

The merchandise may have [[FellOffTheBackOfATruck fallen off the back of a truck]]. The shady seller may be HonestJohn.

* [[http://th04.deviantart.net/fs71/PRE/i/2012/116/3/1/shady_the_drug_dealer_by_tokkiko-d4xn9oh.png This deviantART picture]] depicts a shady dealer selling [[spoiler:drugs]] this way.

* One of the generic henchmen in ''Where In The [=USA=] Is Franchise/CarmenSandiego'' was a very sneaky, sleazy-looking guy who opened his trenchcoat to reveal sparkling, gleaming watches.

* ''WesternAnimation/RecessSchoolsOut'' had Hustler Kid (see the ''WesternAnimation/{{Recess}}'' example below) ask Spinelli, "Wanna buy a Winger Dinger?" (Before you start giggling, a Winger Dinger is some sort of candy bar in the show)

'''Cat #2:''' [[BeatBag I once got ground-up chalk]].

-->'''Strong Bad:''' So wait a minute...your shady bootleg operation sells quality goods, while your legal storefront sells dangerous crap?!\\

This is a visual way of establishing [[BlackMarket a place]] or person as being shady. Often will be parodied by replacing the watches with whatever item likely to make the people around him go {{Squee}} and have a {{Nerdgasm}}. Another common variant is for the seller to be wearing numerous wristwatches on the same arm, pushing up his sleeve to display them. Regardless of circumstance, there's also about a 50% chance of the person being mistaken for a flasher, either by the characters or the audience.

* ''Film/TheBraveOne'' plays it for realism. Creator/JodieFoster's character goes to buy a gun, but is told there's a thirty day waiting limit after getting a license. A customer notices her look of desperation and approaches her outside the store, offering a pistol for a thousand dollars. Rather than carry an illegal handgun in New York City, he takes her to a back alley and has her wait while he fetches the handgun, throwing in a box of ammunition and impromptu instruction on how to use it.

** In another episode, Bill is approached by a stereotypical trenchcoat-wearing flasher. After apparently flashing Bill, he turns out to be an example of this trope when Bill buys something off him.

* ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries''. Although Cyrano Jones is not breaking the law (as he takes pains to point out) we see him taken gems, bottles of perfume and of course [[Recap/StarTrekS2E15TheTroubleWithTribbles tribbles]] from his coat of many pockets.

->'''Salesrobot:''' Wanna' buy a watch?
->'''The Watches:''' ''Don't buy us! We're fakes!''

* Cut-me-own-Throat Dibbler is most noted for selling nearly inedible food, but ''Discworld/GuardsGuards!'' notes that he is also a "purveyor of absolutely anything that could be sold hurriedly from an open suitcase in a busy street and was guaranteed to have [[FellOffTheBackOfATruck fallen off the back of an oxcart]]."

* From ''Disney/{{Hercules}}'': "Hey! Wanna buy a sundial?"

* Implied in ''Disney/OliverAndCompany''. Whenever Fagin checks the time, he's revealed to be wearing a line of watches down his arm.

* A [[Disney/BeautyAndTheBeast Cogsworth-]]lookalike seen in the ''WesternAnimation/HouseOfMouse'' short "Babysitters".

-->'''Shady cat in trenchcoat:''' Psst! Whole milk.\\

*** A band of roving [[ItMakesSenseInContext milk pirates]] [[http://www.kevinandkell.com/2009/kk0707.html causes a shortage]], with milk only available on the "[[BlackMarket white market]]":

*** Kevin's criminal dad was first introduced as selling fake Rolexes, as part of an extended AliceAllusion (he's the white rabbit with a watch in his pocket).

* ''Webcomic/KevinAndKell'': A band of roving [[ItMakesSenseInContext milk pirates]] [[http://www.kevinandkell.com/2009/kk0707.html causes a shortage]], with milk only available on the "[[BlackMarket white market]]":

* A comedy stint on Spanish TV once had a trenchcoated shady salesman selling a video full of [[ExactWords "men in leather... goats... and little girls dressed as nuns!"]] To the avid buyer's dismay, it turned out to be [[spoiler:''Film/TheSoundOfMusic'']]

* On ''Series/SesameStreet'', a green Anything Muppet guy keeps approaching Ernie with offers to sell him letters of the alphabet, among other things. The most famous short is called "Would You Like to Buy an 'O'?"

* Parodied in the ''[[Series/TheGoodies Goodies]]'' episode "Hype Pressure". Experiencing a 1950s revival, Tim turns into a quick-talking, quick-walking, shady spiv. "Wanna buy a nice pair of fluorescent socks?"

* A first-season ''Series/{{MASH}}'' episode has Hawkeye and Trapper dealing with black-marketeers for some stolen medicine. When one of them is questioned by Frank Burns, he hikes up a pant leg to show a dozen watches arrayed on his shin and offers to sell him one.
** And there's a Korean peddler played by Richard Lee-Sung who appears in several episodes, selling dubious products like watches that run backwards and Hitler's pencil case.

* ''ComicStrip/{{Garfield}}'' once (May 9, 1980) declared his intention to go into the business of "black-market kittens", complete with a trenchcoat with Nermal hanging inside. [[FridgeLogic Never you mind where he got it]].

* The video for Music/WeirdAlYankovic's ''White and Nerdy'' had him buying ''Film/TheStarWarsHolidaySpecial'' from such a vender.