a/k/a Tommy Chong is a dynamic portrait of comedy legend Tommy Chong of Cheech and Chong set against the unfolding political horror story of post 9/11 America. Filmmaker Josh Gilbert follows the tragic and absurd tale of Chong as he travels down the rabbit hole of America’s war on drugs and the federal prison system after becoming the primary target in a government sting, code named “Operation Pipe Dreams.” In February of 2003, at a time of unparalleled assaults to our freedom by international terrorists, John Ashcroft and U.S. Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan spent 12 million dollars to take down Tommy Chong for selling art glass water pipes, a/k/a bongs, over the internet. What emerges is an intimate portrait of a cosmic character, caught in the crosshairs of a surreal Cheech and Chong fantasy come to life. (Tommy Chong is HAPA. His father is Chinese, while his mother is Scottish and Irish.). Here’s more about the film:

a/k/a Tommy Chong chronicles the entrapment and incarceration of comedy icon Tommy Chong of the legendary comedy duo, Cheech and Chong. Josh Gilbert takes on the event in his documentary, and offers a sometimes frightening, often hilarious account of Operation Pipe Dreams, a nationwide drug paraphernalia sting spearheaded by a federal prosecutor named Mary Beth Buchanan, appointed by George Bush three short days after the attacks of 9/11.

After fully armed SWAT teams raided the comedian’s home and his business, Chong Glass, Chong was sentenced to 9 months in federal prison for “conspiracy to manufacture and distribute drug paraphernalia through his family business, specializing in handmade glass water pipes, or “bongs”. Of the 55 defendants prosecuted, Tommy Chong of Cheech and Chong was the only one with no prior convictions to receive jail time. Justifying the sentence, George Bush’s appointee, Mary Beth Buchanan cited the classic Cheech and Chong comedy Up In Smoke as evidence that Tommy Chong had become wealthy “trivializing law enforcement efforts to combat marijuana trafficking and use.” As Roger Ebert said after viewing the film, “You do not have to approve of drugs to be offended.”

The film provides a charming portrait of a counter culture icon set against the backdrop of a War on Drugs gone horribly awry.

Buy a/k/a Tommy Chong DVD

a/k/a Tommy Chong

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