There are a few connections in the show to October Road (2007), an ABC show canceled before Life on Mars (2008) debuted. Josh Appelbaum, André Nemec, Bryan Oh, and Scott Rosenberg, who wrote "October Road," are also writers for "Life on Mars." Jonathan Murphy, who played Ronnie in "October Road", also plays Chris Skelton in "Life on Mars." Meanwhile, the name of the apartment building shown in both 1973 and 2008 is 'Cataldo Houses'. Ray Cataldo was an "October Road" character who built houses.