Tommy Chong - Cheech Chong: The Unauthorized Autobiography

There are so many people to acknowledge that I am afraid it will take another book. I will try to just list the important people who may or may not have made it into the book, but were very instrumental in the success of Cheech and Chong.

The first person, of course, is my beautiful soulmate/comedy partner/wife, Shelby. She was there in the beginning and she was there at the end. My daughters, Precious, Robbi, and Rae Dawn, who supplied me with jokes for the records and ideas and performances for the movies. My sons Paris and Gilbran and my grandsons Morgan and Jack. This male energy helped me remain macho during this whole writing experience.

I have to thank Rikki for her stories and support. And Patti Marin for her support and stories about The Cheech. Both ladies gave me a glimpse into the private life of my old partner and for that I will always be in their debt. I have to give a big shout-out to Jimmy Root, who, although he was not in the book, deserved the award given to the Best Damn Roadie in comedy. Jimmy supplied us with ideas to improve the act (sound effects) that were so innovative that we used them in the movies. Jimmy deserves a book all about Jimmy because he performed beyond the call of duty many, many times.

I want to thank Peter Macgregor-Scott, our unit manager for Next Movie, Still Smokin , and The Corsican Brothers . Peter gave me a crash course in filmmaking that saved our asses many, many times. I want to thank Oscar and Elsie, Cheechs parents, for raising such a talented guy. And I want to give a shout-out to Cheechs sisters, cousins, and other relatives for providing us with so much material. And a special shout-out to Cheechs children, Carmen, Joey, Jasmine, and the little grandson.

I want to thank Evelyn and Pat Morita for their support when I went to jail and when we shot the movies. Pee-wee Herman (a.k.a. Paul Reubens) gets a hug and a salute for helping us make a funny movie even funnier. The gang at the Groundlings deserves a big round of appreciation for their help in supplying us with the most talented actors in Hollywood. Bob Stane, the owner of the Ice House, deserves a smile and a pat on the butt for helping Cheech and me perfect our act by being just one of three clubs that actually paid us to performand the Ice House always paid the best back then.

I have to acknowledge the crews on the movies, who also helped this first-time director in so many ways. The sound guys would remind me where I was in the script and what I needed to make the scene work. My script supervisors would spend their lunch breaks writing the additional dialogue into the script so as not to mess up the editors. I have to thank Howard Brown for giving me a career as a director and Eric Wooster for introducing video assist into the C&C movies. A special hug to Kay Dotrice for being our mom during the shooting of The Corsican Brothers . Howard, Eric, and Kay have since passed away, but they will be remembered forever on the pages of this book.

I would not be allowed to live in the U.S.A. if I did not acknowledge my manager and friend during the heyday, Joe Mannis. Joe and his wife, Debbie Mannis, produced The Corsican Brothers and Still Smokin , while their son Seth became a fine artist. Stan Coleman and Eric Wiessman, the genius lawyers who helped us during the movie years, also deserve a shout-out. And the guy who made it all happen deserves a big hello and thank-you as well. Mr. Lou Adler and Ode Records were hip enough to see what we were doing, and they helped make it happen. Lous cousin, Marshall Blonstein, the head of sales at Ode, also introduced me to Howard Brown, who made The Cheech and The Chong millions of dollars. And a mention to Howard Franks, Lous assistant, who is still dealing with Up in Smoke thirty-five years later. And thanks to Ryan Tracy for keeping Cheech and Chong alive with his site during the years when there was no Cheech and Chong.

A big hug and shout-out to Trish, the genius who is editing this heap of writing. Thank you, Trishthank you, thank you, thank you

And last, I want to thank The Cheech, for without him there would be no Cheech and Chong and therefore no story to tellso thank you, Cheech, and good luck with your golf game.

The I Chong: Meditations from the Joint