HPR

Stoner Comedy Godfathers

By Tre Martinez
Contributing Writer

Exclusive High Plains Reader Interview with Tommy Chong!

Fargo-Moorhead comedy fans will have the opportunity to see legends Cheech and Chong March 18 at the Fargodome in what may be one of their last performances.

The stoner comedy godfathers, famous for such films as “Up In Smoke” and “Still Smoking” and the hilarity of musical numbers like “Born in East L.A.” and “Basketball Jones,” are coming to Fargo out of curiosity, Tommy Chong said.

“We’re sort of winding the tour down, so we’re playing places that we’ve never been before and Fargo was on the list.” Chong said, adding that while he’s never been to Fargo, “I love the movie, you know, the Coen brothers movie.”

The duo reunited for a tour that began January 2010, called the “Get It Legal” tour. The tour is designed to create discourse on the current laws regarding cannabis, as well as bring their classic comedy to audiences after their split in the 80s.

“Cheech [Marin] and I, we’re just part of the worldwide effort to bring attention to the good that pot provides,” Chong said. “The whole idea is to change the laws so we can live in peace and harmony with our fellow man.”

Chong is no stranger to the business end of the law. In 2003, many involved in his son’s glass company Nice Dreams were brought up on charges concerning drug paraphernalia. Chong was sentenced to nine months in prison.

“I don’t shut up about that,” Chong told HPR. “It’s my job now because I was put in prison on such a bogus charge that I have to remind people how fragile their freedoms are. I mean, what happened to me could happen to anybody. I’d just like to shine a light on the injustices of the legal system in America.

“What the Feds did, they just went into the “High Times” magazine, went through the ads, started knocking people off, and when they got to me they were quite excited, because I represent primetime news,” Chong said. “You bust Tommy Chong for anything to do with dope, and you’re going to get Charlie Sheen coverage. It was a pure political bust.”

Chong, however, views his time incarcerated in a positive light. “When I went to jail, I felt like I was embedded; I felt like I was a reporter,” he said. “I had the best times of my life [in prison], it was so exciting and so much fun.

“You get protected, especially if you’re a success. You get the big house, and the next thing you know, you’re surrounded by people that cater to you. And then, to be thrown in jail where you’re down to nobody, a number, and to see what life is like from that point of view, it’s amazing. Every day was an adventure. Every day I’d wake up and there’d be something new to see, to learn, to feel, to experience.”

He doesn’t view his troubles as indicative of any fatal flaw in the American system, either. “America right now is sort of like one big casino, where the government [and] the Wall Street people are acting like the house. It’s just a big scam,” Chong said, adding optimistically “but America, we’ve survived everything and we’ll survive this, too.”

Chong himself is hopeful for the end of what some would term the prohibition of marijuana. “I think I was put on this Earth just to remind everybody how unjust and how stupid these pot laws are because pot became illegal right around the time I was born, and it’s still illegal today.” He cites the power of the Internet as an inspiration to his legalization efforts. “You look at Egypt and Libya, and you’ve got an idea of the power of the Internet. It’s changed people’s perceptions of pot because the minute someone says something, everybody just runs to the Internet and they Google it up, and they go ‘oh, well, pot is good for you.’ We’re at an age now where you can’t lie any more, you get busted immediately.”

Along with the tour, the pair has been putting together a new film called “Cheech and Chong’s Animated Movie.” “It’s really good, it’s all our old record bits come to life,” Chong said of the film. “We’re trying to get a theatrical release. We’re shopping it around and hopefully by next summer we’ll have something definite.” Chong said the material for the film came from “about one and a half” records from the 70s, out of nine albums they recorded. “We got a lot of material that could be animated. Very good, very funny stuff. We were funny back then!”

While he looks forward to more animated films, Chong said that this show will be among their last. “It’s coming down. We’re a reunion band, and reunion bands, they only last for a year or two. We were lucky there was enough demand to see us for another year,” Chong said. “It’s coming to an end, and like all good things, it must come to an end.”

“Personally, I got a lot of projects,” Chong said when asked about his future plans. “I’m at that stage in my life where I just want to sit at home in my studio and just create and think of clever ways to show my art. That’s my long-term plan now.” After seeing Marin’s own art involvements in the Chicano art scene, Chong said he came to the realization that “I’m an artist. Everybody’s an artist, you just have to be able to say it out loud.”

“I’m into everything. I’m into photography; I’m into painting. I’m into making jewelry.” Chong said of his art. “I’m also writing another book. I’ve written two books. It’s sort of a spiritual guide by a doper. How to survive in jail with a smile.”

Despite his past legal issues and incarceration and the end of his reunion with Cheech, Chong says he feels hopeful about his future in his art. “I’m an artist, and I’m just going to take advantage of the fact that I can afford to be an artist,” he said. “Life is so good, man.”

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If You Go:
What: Cheech and Chong
Where: Fargodome
When: Fri. March 18 8 p.m., doors at 7
Ticket info: 701-241-9100