"full monty"

by Mark Israel
 
     [This is a fast-access FAQ excerpt.]
This British expression meaning "the whole thing", or more
specifically "16 megabytes of memory, when fitted to an IBM PC or
compatible computer", is first attested in 1986.  To Michael
Quinion's comprehensive treatment at
<http://www.worldwidewords.org/articles/monty.htm> may be added a story
reported by Simon Gray that the origin is "the full diamond mount",
i.e., the whole diamond ring; and the Jargon File's statement:
"This usage is possibly derived from a TV commercial for Del Monte
fruit juice, in which one of the characters insisted on 'the full
Del Monte'."