Cheech and Chong Biopic Already Inspiring Contact High
Like marijuana Marvel superheroes, pot crusaders Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong are getting their very own origin story. In their just-announced biopic, “we are excited to show the world how two dudes from completely different backgrounds got together, changed comedy, and made cannabis mainstream!” said Marin and Chong in a joint (of course) press release, presumably shouting in unison.
The movie is a natural. Cheech and Chong are an American success story or at least the kind where one guy escapes to Canada in the late 1960s to avoid the draft and unexpectedly meets a baked Canadian comedy partner. The film promises to chronicle their counterculture rise in the 1970s, culminating with their stoner classic movie, Up in Smoke.
Underground’s Trevor Engelson will produce, despite being only two years old when Up in Smoke was released in 1978. “Working with Cheech and Chong is a childhood dream of mine,” says Engelson. “I used to listen to my father’s copy of their albums growing up.”
Don't Miss
How did the comedy team get its superpowers? We can’t wait to see the big-screen depiction of the moment each man got high for the first time (descriptions courtesy of their official website).
Cheech: “My dad was a policeman, LAPD, 30 years, and I got that line growing up: ‘Marijuana, don’t you ever try marijuana or I’ll end your short little life right now!’ After I smoked my first joint, I kind of thought, ‘Wow, what else have they been lyin’ about?’”
Chong: “He gave me a Lenny Bruce record and a joint… and I got high for the first time. It was the first time I ever smoked. It changed my life. The next day I quit school.”
Despite their stoner friendship, Cheech and Chong went their separate ways in the 1980s with Marin focusing on solo projects such as Born in East L.A., Beverly Hills Chihuahua, and 120 episodes of Nash Bridges. The two have reunited in recent years on a number of entrepreneurial ventures, mostly centered around their shared love of doobage. Here’s just a sample of the ventures they’re currently pushing on cheechandchong.com:
- Bowlmates - What is a Bowlmate? According to Cheech and Chong’s site, a Bowlmate is “someone who’s cool… Someone who “gets it“… Someone who likes a good joke, and doesn’t steal your lighter.” Joining is 100 percent free and gets you access to online chats and exclusive discounts at the Cheech and Chong shop.
- Cruise Chews - “Precision-dosed Full Spectrum Hemp Gummies to give you the same, safe, natural, legal, & relaxing experience every time” -- and only 49 bucks!
- Their own line of Cannabis, with choice strains like Love Machine, Ahhberry, and Stadankohh (the one that smells like “Cheech & Chong mixed with a wild skunk”). Hey, if you live in the right state, you can even buy it wholesale.
- And yes, of course they’re as late to NFTs as everyone else.
So the biopic is just the latest in a series of business ventures dedicated to keeping the good name of Cheech and Chong in the public consciousness. We’re getting a contact high just thinking about it.
