4/20 EVENTS NOT JUST GRASS-ROOTS ANYMORE

A Once-Hidden Holiday Goes Commercial

"4/20."

Know what that means?

If so, you're probably grinning (or fretting) about
now.

If not, you just might be showing your age.

Sunday marks the annual "4/20" holiday, when stoners around the world
will gather to celebrate, and smoke, marijuana--an illegal tradition
you won't find on any official calendar.

For decades, this counterculture tradition of getting high on April
20--4/20--was mostly confined to dorm rooms, hippie hide-outs and the
basement of that neighbor of yours who watched cartoons all day.

No longer, though, as 420 now is going commercial. This year, the
release of three documentaries, a Web-broadcast television show,
concerts and stand-up comedy events have been timed to occur around
April 20. The movie "Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay," which
opens nationwide this week, has a marketing campaign that includes
"420 parties" over the weekend in several cities, including Chicago.

In fact, 420 has gotten so big that some purists fear the
commercialization glosses over "the reason for the season."

The origins of 420--pronounced "four-twenty"--go back to 1971, when a
group of students at a California high school students used the code
phrase "420 Louis" to indicate that they would meet, and get high, at
4:20 p.m., in front of a local Louis Pasteur statue, said Steven
Hager, editor in chief of High Times magazine. Over the next 20 years
the ritual of smoking pot at that time, and later, on the date of
4/20, spread virally, a "grass-roots phenomenon," according to Hager.

In recent years, authorities have also begun to take notice of the
observance. The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy now
alerts parents and educators with a fact sheet titled "4-20--Did You
Know That This Is More Than Just a Date?"

These days, 420 is a slogan for the pro-pot lifestyle. "420?" as a
question can mean "Would you like to smoke?" or "Is it cool if I
smoke?" Those three numerals also emblazon T-shirts, bumper stickers
and beer.

Google "420" and "marijuana" and you'll get nearly 400,000 hits,
including "420-friendly" dating sites, stores selling smoking pipes
and even an ironically named drug test.

"Anyone wanting to make and sell a 420-related product tends to add
the number 420 anywhere they can," said Rob Griffin, webmaster of the
online 420 Magazine.

This year, NORML, the oldest and largest marijuana legalization
organization in the country, plans to hold a fundraising drive,
something it started in 2007.

"Beyond the fact that many commercial entities have now latched onto
it, NORML is definitely, totally taking advantage of this fantastic
organic holiday," said Allen St. Pierre, the group's executive director.

In Chicago, several clubs are planning events, often advertising
alongside celebrations for Earth Day, which is Tuesday. It's just one
association with 420, part of a push by some adherents to make the day
about more than just getting stoned.

"We need peace in the drug war, and this should be the central focus
of 420, in my opinion," said Hager, the High Times editor.

One 39-year-old Chicago professional, who didn't want his named used
for obvious reasons, said he's all set to host his fourth annual 420
party.

"We serve pizza rolls, Lit'l Smokies, all kinds of candy bars--the
munchies-food I guess you'd expect," he said.

"We're all in our 30s--a mix of people, although everybody is in some
kind of white-collar job, and we all enjoy an occasional smoke."

What does 420 mean to him?

"Nothing really special, I guess. It's an easy excuse," he
said.

"What else are you going to do?"