Interview With Cheech Marin And Tommy Chong
Last month, CULTURE sat down with legendary duo Cheech & Chong moments after they signed guitar-inspired art at a red carpet event along the Sunset Strip.
It’s Nov 16, 2010. When exactly was the first time you two got together to perform?
CHONG: Uh, 1969.
CHEECH: No, ’68.
CHONG: 1969. Umm, it was December 1968 . . . That’s the first time we did a gig together. ’69 was a good year. I can tell you a lot about ’69.
How did you feel about Proposition 19 failing?
CHONG: We need to get out and VOTE!! We all need to vote!
CHEECH: Everyone needs to vote.
CHONG: When is that vote coming up anyways?
[After some clarification]
CHONG: I’m glad it failed. There would have been too many growers, too many dealers. The price would have dropped and no one would have made any more money. No more drug cartels and no more gangs.
How many more years do you see the two of you performing together?
CHONG and CHEECH [simultaneously]: Forty more years!
What’s your favorite food to eat when medicated?
CHONG: Is this guy for real?
CHEECH: Oh, he’s OK. He’s one of your sons.
CHONG: I like hard boiled eggs.
CHEECH: I eat anything when I’m high.
Is there anything interesting we need to know about you?
CHONG: Yeah. Cheech is really Iranian.
CHEECH: And I have three dicks.
Do you smoke more or less compared to when you were younger?
CHONG: The quality is so much better now that we smoke less–
CHEECH: –and we enjoy it more.
(Photo and interview by Kristopher Christensen)
This interview first debuted in Culture Magazine’s December Issue
