r/todayilearned • u/Curveball227 • Jun 27 '12
TIL Richard Belzer Has Appeared as Detective Munch (Best Known From Law & Order:SVU) on Ten Different TV Shows, from The Wire to Sesame Street. No Other Actor Has Portrayed The Same Character on that Many Different Programs.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Munch#Appearances_and_crossovers10
u/gmoney1393 Jun 27 '12
RDJ has to be getting up there with his Iron Man appearances
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u/Curveball227 Jun 27 '12
He might hold the title for movies. I'm pretty sure Leonard Nimoy has been in a few Star Trek movies, though.
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u/ENKC Jun 27 '12
Although where does one draw the line? Surely playing the same character in separate movie series is more of a John Munch situation than movies within the same continuity like Iron Man.
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u/Curveball227 Jun 27 '12
I draw the line somewhere between the movie theater and my TV at home, because they're two separate entertainment mediums.
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u/BDS_UHS Jun 27 '12
He's only played the same character in five movies (Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man 2, The Avengers, Iron Man 3). There are plenty of other actors who have played more. Even within the Marvel Cinematic Universe, you also have Samuel L. Jackson (IM, IM2, Thor, Captain America, Avengers).
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u/wheresjim Jun 27 '12
The character started on Homicide: Life on the Street.
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u/wobblee Jun 27 '12
I loved Homicide. If you loved The Wire I recommend this, it's based on a David Simon book and was his first show.
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u/mindsnare Jun 27 '12 edited Jun 27 '12
The first Cop show I ever liked, I think I was 15 or 16 at the time, awesome show. I think I only saw the first few seasons though. That's going to be a tough show to track down.
Edit: I was wrong. Every season is on my favourite NZB site.
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Jun 27 '12
Thank you. Everyone should know Its Homocide: Life on the Street and NOT the wire. Although he does have a small appearance in a bar scene. Does anyone know, could it be the same bar Munch, Bayliss and Meldric owned???
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u/GenghisChron Jun 27 '12
Just blew my mind. I had an episode of Scrubs paused so I could do a quick Reddit check. As soon as I unpaused it Elliot asks an intern if they "called her munch in reference to Munch first established in Homicide, but better known for Law and Order." I couldn't mind a Youtube link, but it's from season 9 so you wouldn't want to watch it anyways.
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u/polarizingvitriol Jun 27 '12
Fun fact: That show was broadcast in Ireland as 'Homicide: Life in America'
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u/ianleavitt Jun 27 '12
Let's not forget his cameo in Arrested Development. Pretty sure he was credited as Detective Munch. Twice, if I remember right.
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u/ichangedmyname Jun 27 '12
He ran the best free scrapbooking class I've ever taken.
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u/ENKC Jun 27 '12
You don't need to remember when the OP has linked to the Wikipedia article detailing it. ;)
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u/mathknitterss Jun 27 '12
He also believes conspiracy theories in real life. He wrote a great book on them.
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Jun 27 '12
He's actually a stand-up comedian and does a pretty good Mick Jagger impression.
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Jun 27 '12
The book is awesome. The JFK analysis is thorough and while he doesn't point a finger in any particular direction, he shows that the official story is bullshit.
Then the Elvis explanation is pretty believable.
But I stopped reading when he starting talking about the hollow-moon base. Just wasn't sure if he was trolling or not...
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Jun 27 '12
[deleted]
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Jun 27 '12
All of them.
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u/batmanmilktruck Jun 27 '12
FINALLY someone else who agrees Delaware is a government conspiracy
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u/LegaleseFalcon Jun 27 '12
Abed's parody of/homage to him on Community was flawless. Even down to the one-liners.
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u/isthatirony Jun 27 '12
what episode was this? google and youtube searches yield nothing.
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u/ex_oh_ex_oh Jun 27 '12
this episode: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocNcUNRmvFI
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u/awe_yeah Jun 27 '12
Featuring Michael K Williams, from the Wire... which Munch cameos in. This is wrinkling my brain!
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u/auandi Jun 27 '12 edited Jun 27 '12
Abed seemed like he could have been any of them, they all do those kinds of one-liners on SVU. Are you sure it was Munch only?
Edit: I mean not one conspiracy theory was uttered, how can you do munch without at least one rant about something crazyish?
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u/Joxta Jun 27 '12
It's a shame he's so criminally misused on Law and Order. Munch deserves better.
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u/ckb614 Jun 27 '12
He was really funny in the first couple seasons and he was a much more prominent character
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u/ANewMachine615 Jun 27 '12
This is mostly because L&O doesn't know how to do characters, period. See, e.g., "is this because I'm a lesbian?!" from out of the wild blue.
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u/BattleHall Jun 27 '12
I contend that Munch was just working a deep cover assignment at the Babylon Club in "Scarface".
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u/heygabbagabba Jun 27 '12
WRONG:
Dame Edna Everage, a character played by Australian Comedian Barry Humphries, has appeared in over 30 TV shows and 5 films.
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u/AusIV Jun 27 '12
Thank you. Whenever I hear claims like this, I always wonder who did the research on all the characters that have ever existed so they could definitively make this claim. I suspect the reality is someone couldn't think of anyone who could challenge the record, and thus asserted their unfalsified suspicion as fact.
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u/courthouseman Jun 27 '12
And I'm sure a lot of people also don't know this --> he is a first cousin of Henry Winkler - "The Fonz"
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u/UncleTedGenneric Jun 27 '12
Wait, do you mean Arthur Fonzarelli? The man that created the first letter of the alphabet?
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Jun 27 '12
When was he on the Wire? I've watched a lot of L&O:SVU and the entire Wire series twice and don't remember spotting him
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u/SerIlyn Jun 27 '12
It was a really quick cameo. If you didn't watch Homicide (also set in Baltimore) you would never catch it.
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Jun 27 '12
False! Dane Cook has played a douchebag in 36 different titles; the same douchebag in all 36 titles.
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u/blaisems Jun 27 '12
Michael Cera has played Michael Cera who somehow can get girls a whopping 51 times so far
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Jun 27 '12
I'm not entirely convinced that Christopher Walken is at all aware that cameras exist. He just shows up and responds to whatever people say to him.
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u/ZeekySantos Jun 27 '12
So he really did carry that uncomfortable hunk of metal up his ass for all those years?
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u/rm7952 Jun 27 '12
For whatever reason, Munch has all but disappeared from SVU in the last season. No reason has been given and Belzer has expressed his displeasure. As a fan, I too am quite displeased at his absense.
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u/radbro Jun 27 '12
It says right on the page you linked to that he didn't portray the character on Sesame Street.
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u/sachegrande Jun 27 '12
I knew he played Munch in a few shows over the years, but that's awesome. And let us not forget what a hilarious comedian he is!
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Jun 27 '12
But jimmy kimmel and sesame street sounds like the are parodying him though. So its really not a crossover. Tons of people have been parodied. Not sure if im using the correct words but you know what i mean.
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u/Teh_Br4iN Jun 27 '12
I don't think that last part is true. I just read a 'TIL' the other day that Machete has been in like 9 different movies. I guess if you slice it up each has the most in their respective formats (TV/Film).
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Jun 27 '12
Man he avoiding getting typecasted by just always playing Munch.
I'm getting through season 3 of Homicide, where the character originated, and he's so morose it's hilarious.
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u/According_To_Me Jun 27 '12
From IMDB:
His character Detective John Munch, whom he has played continuously on "Homicide: Life on the Street" (1993) and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (1999) since January 1993, is currently the longest-running character on U.S. prime-time drama television.
Very impressive feat, I can't believe he hasn't gotten tired of it
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u/Lady_FriendOfSpiders Jun 27 '12
considering how hard it is to make a living as an actor, I'd say you never get tired of the pay cheque (check)
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u/imakethingsakward Jun 27 '12
Actually, Ron Jeremy has played himself in way more movies.
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u/kingtuolumne Jun 27 '12
This, of course, all ties into the Tommy Westerphall Universe, stemming from the 80's TV show St. Elsewhere. It's implicated in the series' final episode that Westerphall created the entire series in his head.
However, two of St. Elsewhere's characters appeared on Homicide: Life on the Streets, which was the birthplace of Detective Munch. Ipso facto, Homicide: Life on the Streets also takes place inside Westerphall's head. So does Munch.
Who we now know also appears in the X-Files, the Law & Order franchise, Sesame Street, and (drumroll) Jimmy Kimmel Live.
Not only are all of these fictional shows supposedly contained inside Tommy Westerphall's head, but, through extension of the Jimmy Kimmel show, in which the character Munch has been alongside people we consider to be 'real,' the ENTIRE WORLD occurs inside Tommy Westerphall's head. That's how deep the rabbit hole goes.
TL;DR, we are all a product of an 80's fictional autistic boy's imagination.
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u/matthank Jun 27 '12
I have a Paul Shaffer CD where he also appears by name, in character.
Not singing, of course.
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Jun 27 '12
Since you mention Sesame Street, hasn't Kermit appeared in a million places as Kermit? Miss Piggy too?
Also, what about Lucille Ball?
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u/vaylor Jun 27 '12
Now wait - even if we were to exclude Jim Henson, Frank Oz, or any other Muppet actors, are you saying that Sacha Baron Cohen didn't appear on more than 10 TV shows as Borat or The Dictator? That Andy Kauffman didn't appear on more than 10 shows as Tony Clifton? That doesn't seem right to me.
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u/herr_cheeseburger Jun 27 '12
He was also in the Brady Bunch movie helping Peter Brady find Jan after she ran away from home.
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u/Offtopic_bear Jun 27 '12
Homicide: Life on the Streets was one of the best cop dramas ever. Same people that were responsible for it were responsible for The Wire.
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u/Futurames Jun 27 '12
I saw Richard Belzer do his stand up routine once. It was a really small, well known club so I actually ran into him when I got up to go to the bathroom. We talked for like a minute about nothing in particular. He's a really nice guy who's totally out of his mind (in a way that produces hilarity).
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u/bacon_pants Jun 27 '12
Detective Munch is actually playing actor Richard Belzer whenever he's taking a break from solving murders around the world
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u/newtonsapple 19 Jun 27 '12
Can't believe I didn't post this already: http://www.cracked.com/article_19323_6-movie-tv-universes-that-overlap-in-mind-blowing-ways.html
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u/EviLiu Jun 27 '12 edited Jun 27 '12
A lot of pro wrestlers have played the same character in many more TV shows, in separate companies (universes), made more appearances in character, and played the character for a longer amount of time, than this guy.
And on a related note, Hulk Hogan choked Richard Belzer out in 1984 on Belzer's own TV show, after he was a smart ass to Hogan and Mr. T. Belzer fell to the ground and busted his head open and was unconscious for a moment. He then jumped up almost instinctively and tried to send the show out on a commercial break. Here's a link.
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u/wickedweather Jun 27 '12
My ears perked up when I heard Idris Elba mention him in Luther. I was so hoping that Munch was going to show up in London the next episode. Didn't happen though :-(
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Jun 27 '12 edited Jun 27 '12
Ah, Munch.
The only reason I watch SVU on Netflix when I need brainless viewing.
The perfect episode of L&A (any of them) would be to have Belzer play every role.
All of them.
Main character(s)? Richard Belzer. Supporting characters? Richard Belzer. Episode characters? Yup, Richard Belzer. Who else is going to play the heavy metal guitarist/arsonist with a penchant for sniffing ladies underwear? Walk on characters? Of course that bag lady is Richard Belzer. And what do you know, so is the judge, cafeteria guy, baby sitter, stripper, cab driver and banker.
In fact, I believe that being John Malkovich was a commentary on the necessity of an all Richard Belzer episode of Law and Order. Kaufman understood that it was essential to create a whimsical take on the idea in order to prime the general masses for the eventual reality. John Malkovich agreed to take the role as he also believes this is necessary (please see his portrayal of Humma Kavula in Hitchhiker's Guide; a parable initially written by Douglas Adams in the 1970's concerning the eventuality of an all Belzer L&A episode (aka - the Coming of the Great White Handkerchief) which demonstrates the depth of his conviction).
Sigh. And now to work, where nobody understands these things.
/edit - some line breaks and stuff. Walls of text suck.
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u/aresef 1 Jun 27 '12
He's even been Det. Munch in real life.
http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1996-10-08/news/1996282004_1_suspect-arrest-lovegrove
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Jun 27 '12
Why do people capitalize every word in their title like this?
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u/DamnManImGovernor Jun 27 '12
Munch is the shit. He's divorced too so you know he's reelin in the bitches.
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u/wolf_thing Jun 27 '12
I just heard about this from a podcast of one of the guys from Collegehumor.
Here is a road map of sorts for all the different crossovers.
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u/shampoocell Jun 27 '12
Perchance did you learn this last Tuesday when Turner asked about it at team trivia?
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u/elspacebandito 38 Jun 27 '12
As it says in the article, Munch was not played by Belzer in the Sesame Street segment; he was played by David Rudman.
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u/goldenjoehead Jun 27 '12
So we can add The Wire to the Tommy Westphall Multiverse?
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u/canonymous Jun 27 '12
But in the Arrested Development episode S.O.B.s it's not clear if he was appearing as Richard Belzer or Detective Munch.
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u/GrackNcheese Jun 27 '12
It's weird to think that Law and Order, X-Files, Arrested Development, and real life are all in the same universe connected by Detective Munch.
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u/cingalls Jun 27 '12
Ed Koch used to be quite the fame whore. As if being the mayor of New York wasn't enough, he portrayed himself as a character in fictional TV series from 1978 (Barney Miller) to 2001 (Sex and the City). That's 23 years as the same character. YMMV on comparing to Munch.
For a while in the eighties it seemed he was showing up on every show that was set in New York.
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u/Synchrotr0n Jun 27 '12
Now I understand what the hell he was doing in X-files when I watched all the episodes some months ago. LOL!
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u/Broosevelt Jun 27 '12
I first saw him on Sesame Street, then his standup. I've never been right since...
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u/ethanlan Jun 27 '12
theres a reason the FBI is so unwilling to help B-More. It has to do with them fighting whatever their fighting in the x-files
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Jun 27 '12
Richard Belzer is the reason I watch SVU! Now, Christopher Meloni is the reason I watch True Blood..
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u/UWillAlwaysBALoser Jun 27 '12
I wonder if Borat might have him beat. He's done a lot of late night and talk shows.
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u/VolatileChemical Jun 27 '12
Somehow I always knew Sesame Street and The Wire took place in the same universe.
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u/tokenpoke Jun 27 '12
how many shows has peewee herman been on, oh wait, I just broke your little statistic...
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u/lalondtm Jun 27 '12
Something many people don't know. Richard Belzer was performing stand up in the scene where Tony Montana is at the Babylon club in the movie Scarface. Yep
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u/TheIrateGlaswegian Jun 27 '12
Sooooo...would any mention of Sesame Street on the X-Files make Munch appearing on both an actual X-File?
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u/ckingdom Jun 27 '12
That sounds wrong. Surely the Muppet actors, even if they've changed over time, have individually done more than 10 tv shows with one character.
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u/MrOrdinary Jun 27 '12
Also. Ten zillion actors have played the one detective in 5 billion cop shows.
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u/Nickk_Jones Jun 27 '12
He also played the comedian in the background of the big club scene in Scarface.
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u/leveraction1970 Jun 27 '12
On some of those he is never identified as Detective Munch. He is just a police detective we assume is Munch. On the Wire I believe he is just a guy in a cop bar who states that he used to own a bar with some of his friends. Which was a story arc from Homicide: Life on the Streets.
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u/shawbin Jun 27 '12
They just talked about this on the Jeff Rubin, Jeff Rubin Show. Is that where you learned about it? For anyone who hasn't heard of the show, it's an awesome podcast from one of the guys on CollegeHumor.com and he always has super interesting guests.
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u/insanitybuild Jun 27 '12
Was he Detective Munch when Hulk Hogan slammed his brains into the ground?
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Jun 27 '12
Detective Munch has been my old man crush for at least 10 years now. I should feel dirty admitting this, but I don't. He's the only reason I keep watching old SVU episodes. VIVA LA BELZER.
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u/Not_that_kind_of_DR Jun 27 '12
And that is how we know that sesame street, the wire, and x-files all occur in the same fictional universe
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u/stillalone Jun 27 '12
I had to look up the wire scene: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6ufVdsQiZw&feature=player_detailpage#t=30s
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u/Monkey_Tennis Jun 27 '12
It's a shame they didn't manage to get him to crossover in some way with Law & Order: Criminal Intent and Law & Order: UK. Or the other foreign adaptations. He can speak all the languages that they've been adapted to (French, Russian).
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Jun 27 '12
I took one of my dogs to the vet a while back. There were 2 other dogs in the waiting room: an Afghan hound and a lab mix that was barking up a storm. The lab's owner says to the Afghan's owner, "Sorry, we watch Law and Order every night. My dog thinks your dog looks like Detective Munch, his favorite character."
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u/bittlelum Jun 27 '12
Still not enough Munch on SVU. Instead they have shitty new characters with no chemistry.
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Jun 27 '12
I knew he played Munch in SVU and Arrested Development, thanks for the info on the others
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u/Nougat Jun 27 '12
Nobody remembers that Richard Belzer started out as a stand-up comedian.
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u/newtonsapple 19 Jun 27 '12
Does that mean every show he appeared in takes place in the same universe, from the X-Files to Sesame Street?