Marijuana culture has changed since Cheech and Chong first appeared on the comedy scene; what hasn’t changed is their characteristic humor.
The stoner comedy duo performs Saturday at the Clearwater River Casino outside Lewiston. Together, they’ve produced six gold comedy albums, including Grammy-winner “Los Cochinos” (1973), and starred in eight films.
Here’s what the past 50 years have held for Cheech and Chong and their indulgence of choice:
1968 - Tommy Chong and Richard “Cheech” Marin meet in Vancouver, Canada, and begin performing improv comedy routines. Chong was living there, and Cheech moved there from California to avoid the draft for the Vietnam War.
1971 - Debut sketch-based album, “Cheech & Chong” is released.
1978 - The duo releases “Up In Smoke,” their first full-length feature movie.
1985 - Cheech and Chong appear in “After Hours,” a black comedy film directed by Martin Scorsese.
1985 - The pair releases “Get Out of My Room,” and later separates.
1992 - Cheech and Chong work together to voice characters in “FernGully: The Last Rainforest,” an animated film.
1996 - California becomes the first state to legalize medical marijuana. Medical marijuana use is now legal in 29 states.
2003 - Chong's Glass, based in California, is raided by federal officials. Chong pleads guilty to charges of conspiring to distribute drug paraphernalia and is sentenced to nine months in federal prison, fined $20,000 and forfeits $120,000 in assets.
2008 - Cheech and Chong reunite for the “Light Up America” comedy tour.
2009 - While on the “Cheech and Chong Light Up Australia” tour, the group becomes involved in a drug operation in which 50 people are searched. Six of them are caught in possession of cannabis.
2011 - Cheech and Chong guest star on “The Simpsons.”
2011 - Cheech and Chong appear in a viral video that appears to be a trailer for a fictitious movie titled “Cheech & Chong’s Magic Brownie Adventure,” but is revealed to be a commercial for Fiber One snack brownies.
2012 - Colorado and Washington become the first two states to legalize recreational marijuana. There are now nine states where it’s legal.
2018 - Cheech and Chong appear on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” after former Speaker of the House, John Boehner, joins the board of a marijuana company and expresses his support of legalization. They claim that since marijuana is becoming accepted, they will shift their comedy to things that are still illegal, like “unpasteurized dairy products,” taping and distributing football games with the consent of the NFL and “burning leaves without a permit.”
IF YOU GO:
WHAT: Cheech & Chong.
WHEN: 8 p.m. Saturday, June 29.
WHERE: Clearwater River Casino, 17500 Nez Perce Rd., Lewiston.
COST: $30-$75 ticketswest.com
