So I'm sitting watching the "Grey's Anatomy" premiere this week and they get to this amusing area (in an otherwise slightly stupid episode) where Cristina falls down, has an icicle fall on her and pierce her abdomen, and then has a fantasy "flash forward" of herself and that annoying Meredith Grey in the future.

I'm only half paying attention, but I notice that the scene prominently features a breakfast cereal which SEEMS slightly familiar to me, but which I'm dead certain, for some reason, isn't a real cereal. By the time Grey's is over, its driving me crazy. Why the heck do I have a feeling of familiarity from "Nuts & More" cereal?

It takes a couple of days, but I eventually am reading the "Chuck" forum on this board and people are mentioning "Nuts & More" appearing there too. And then I DO remember, because I'd seen the Chuck premiere on Hulu.com several days earlier and "Nuts & More" must have stuck in the back of my head while watching Grey's.

Naturally I'm curious where, if anywhere else, "Nuts & More" has been referenced. But I also think this is kind of a cool topic overall. Most of us are probably familiar with Morley Cigarettes--those famous fictional (yet slightly familiar looking, because of the Marlboro-like box) props smoked by the Cigarette Smoking Man on the X-Files. And if you've paid attention over the years, you may have noticed that Morleys have been picked up as a prop by dozens of other TV shows, and even some movies.

I guess this may have happened with other props too. Also, sometimes there are fictional places, newspapers, companies, etc. acting as connections for shows too.

So anyone notice Nuts & More anywhere else? Or is anyone, perhaps, a big fan of tracking every last place where Morley cigarettes have popped up? Notice any other major TV show connectors?

How about that generic "cola", "root beer", and "beer"? It was popular on Roseanne, and I think a couple of dozen other shows.

Also, PlayPen magazine has popped up in several shows.

Really? Can I ask what shows (and movies)? I've failed to notice.

The ubiquitous generic soft drink cups with the brown and orange design on them. I always notice those.

I think there's a standard milk carton that pops up pretty often, too. I can't remember what it looks like, though.

Someone on Moonlight went to Hearst College from Veronica Mars.

I'm sure there are formal lists out there, but off the top of my head a FEW I recall (and there are many many more)?

-Spike smoked them on "Buffy The Vampire Slayer".
-Claire's mom smoked them on "Heroes".
-Malcolm's mother smoked them on "Malcolm in the Middle".
-I recall them in the Oliver Stone movie "Platoon".
-Red Foreman makes Eric smoke some once, on "That 70s Show".

There's more, I know.

Oh. One I recall reading about once was that apparently the X-Files was FAR from the first to use them. Apparently these go all the way back to the Mission Impossible TV show.

Well, Platoon alone is pre-X-Files.

On Bones, they go to the Royal Diner. On House last night, Cuddy and the PI showed up at the diner.

Alias and Heroes: Slusho! Soft Drinks. (Also in Cloverfield...it's an Abrams thing.)

The Knight Rider pilot and several first-season episodes of Heroes had scenes set at the Monteceto, the casino from Las Vegas.

Terminator movies and T:TSCC, drunk guy in an alley on hand to witness the naked time travel. And to sacrifice his pants so the time travelers can be on their way.

Oceanic Airlines. It's been used not just on Lost but dozens of other places. Some because of stock footage originally from the movie "Executive Decision" and some simply because they needed a fake airline name.

"Bones" recently had someone eating a Fruit Loops clone called "Berry Loops" but I don't know if its been used elsewhere.

Characters can be big crossover "props" too. A lot of really lame sitcom-to-sitcom crossovers have been done, but its been done with dramatic shows too--often on completely different networks, from completely different production companies. The biggest example I can think of? John Munch. He's been on no less than 6 different shows, on at least three different networks. And that's counting ALL of the Law & Order shows as if they are a single show.

I don't know the first instance (I'm sure there's a list somewhere, or at least a stab at it on Wikipedia), but XF was certainly far from the first to use it, so other shows didn't pick it up from them; Morleys are as industry-wide as Alan Smithee.

And the second Brady Bunch movie.

For some reason, that makes me feel bad for the guy John Munch is based on.

He's based on someone real?

Son of a gun... he IS. Just found it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jay_Landsman

As for a list of Munch's appearances? Found one here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Munch#Ap..._and_crossovers

So... I was underestimating when I guessed "no less than 6 different shows, on at least three different networks". In actuality its 8 different television shows on four different networks, PLUS PBS (Sesame Street) PLUS he's apparently going to be on "Paris enquêtes criminelles", a French Law & Order spinoff.

Wow. Munch gets around.

He was in only one scene of The Wire, but the scene did have the real Jay Landsman in it. They did not really interact.