CAN OLD STONERS OUTLAST ISSUES THAT MAKE THEM SIZZLE?

Words of wisdom from those seemingly ageless stoners: "For some
reason, we're timeless," marvels Tommy Chong. "Yeah, we're like the
immigration problem. We're never going to go away," pledges Richard
"Cheech" Marin.

Right they are.

Cheech and Chong, credited by many with creating the stoner genre of
film and comedy, have been sparking up together, and apart, for more
than 40 years.

Clearly, the pot hasn't killed them or their careers.

The pair bring their new show Cheech and Chong: Get It Legal to town
Friday. This comes on the heels of their hit reunion tour, Cheech and
Chong: Light Up America, a couple of years back.

It's no accident that even for those who weren't born in the tandem's
heyday, Cheech and Chong are cultural icons who still resonate, says Marin.

"We hypnotize people," he says. Many of their fans weren't even born
when the duo separated in 1985 to pursue solo careers. But they got
back together as a comedy unit, in, of all places, Ottawa. The
Canadian connection is strong. The L.A.-raised Marin, 65, and the
Edmonton-born Chong, 72, first started as a joint act in Vancouver in
the late 1960s and soon conquered the continent with their
countercultural shtick, relating mostly to their ever-chill states.

Their stoner shtick paid monster dividends: They cut nine hit discs,
including Big Bambu and Los Cochinos, the latter winning the 1973
Grammy award for best comedy album. They also made nine hit flicks,
including Up in Smoke, which grossed more than $100 million at the
gate. The guys also materialized in Graham Chapman's pirate spoof
Yellowbeard and Martin Scorsese's off-centred After Hours. After a
messy split in the mid-'80s, Cheech showed up in such flicks as Tin
Cup and the Spy Kids trilogy, as well as the TV series Nash Bridges.
Chong popped up in comedy clubs and on That ' 70s Show.

They planned to get back together for a movie in 2003, but Chong had
to do nine months in jail after pleading guilty to charges of
distributing drug paraphernalia in the U.S.

What is intriguing is that the issues that burned when the pair first
started out continue to sizzle today: the legalization of marijuana
and Latino immigration crackdowns.

The pair -- their voices, anyway -- are set to be unleashed shortly
in an animated feature film.

They are also working on a live-action feature, set in Mexico and
slated for release next year. The working title: Grumpy Old Stoners.

In the meantime, Chong still maintains a residence in Vancouver: "I
go back frequently to put out the garbage and to mow the grass."

We'll leave the latter remark to your own imaginations.

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On Stage

Cheech and Chong: Get it Legal

Where: River Rock Show Theatre, 8811 River Rd., Richmond

When: Friday night at 8

Tickets: $69.50 and $79.50 at Ticketmaster