Funny Men

A couple days ago, PBS ran a special on the rise of the singer/songwriters of the late sixties and early seventies, focusing mostly on the SoCal-Laurel Canyon folks–James Taylor, Carole King, Jackson Brown, Eagles, et al. Most of these worked the Troubadour Club in L.A., which was the happening scene.


As part of the show–which I much enjoyed–they interviewed some of the better known acts at the Troubadour back in the day, which included Steve Martin and Cheech and Chong.  


During their interview, Cheech Marin talked about smoking dope for the first time. He mimed taking a big toke from a reefer, then said, "Oh, wow!" A beat. "I wonder what else they're lying to us about ... ?"


Cracked me up. 


Those of you who don't remember the anti-drug campaign of the sixties, the government, in its total ignorance about the issue of illegal drugs, tried to equate marijuana with heroin. Do the former, it inevitably leads to the latter, and all drugs were equally bad.


That worked almost as well as Nancy Reagan's "Just Say No." campaign years later. 


The notion of a fat-cat senator drinking a scotch on the rocks and telling kids how bad weed was? Didn't play in Peoria. Still doesn't ...