Cheech Marin

Richard Anthony"Cheech"Marin(born July 13, 1946) is an American comedian and actor. He gained recognition as part of the comedy actCheech & Chongduring the 1970s and early 1980s withTommy Chong, and asDon Johnson's partner, Insp. Joe Dominguez, onNash Bridges. He has also voiced characters in severalDisneyfilms, includingOliver & Company,The Lion King,The Lion King 1½, theCarsfranchise,Coco,andBeverly Hills Chihuahua.
Marin's trademark is his characters' strongChicanoaccents.
Marin was born on July 13, 1946, inSouth Los Angeles,California, toMexicanparents Elsa (néeMeza; 1923–2010), a secretary, and Oscar Marin (1922–2015), a police officer for theLAPDandUS Navyveteran ofWorld War II.Marin was born with acleft lip, which was surgically repaired. Marin identifies asChicano; he speaks someSpanishand often uses it in his movies.
Marin's nickname "Cheech" is short for "chicharrón", friedpork rind, which is a popular snack and ingredient inLatin American cuisine.In a 2017 NPR interview, Marin attributed the nickname to his uncle: "I came home from the hospital, I was like a couple of days old or something, my uncle came over and he looked in the crib and he said [in Spanish], 'Ay, parece un chicharrón.' Looks like a little chicharrón, you know?"
In 1955, Marin and his family moved toGranada Hills, California, and he attended primary school at St. John Baptist de la Salle Catholic School. Marin then went to high school atBishop Alemany High School, during which he started to attend folk music events at theAsh GroveonMelrose Avenueas a teenager. Afterwards, he studied atCalifornia State University, Northridge(then known as San Fernando Valley State College), where he was a member ofPhi Sigma Kappa.During his second semester at CSUN, he worked almost full-time at Nordskog Industries inVan Nuys, while enrolled more than full-time as a college student. It was also during this time that he was socially introduced to marijuana through his fraternity, a key feature in his later film career, in addition to becoming acquainted withTimothy Learyat aStudents for a Democratic Societycampus event, who would become a lifelong friend. Soon after graduating CSUN as an English major in 1968, he auditioned to sing forFrank Zappa's band,The Mothers of Invention. Not being offered the gig during his audition, a day later Marin moved toVancouver,British Columbia, in order toevade the draftduring theVietnam War.Marin met his future comedic partner,Tommy Chong, inCalgary,Alberta.
As a part of the highly successful comedy duoCheech & Chong, Marin participated in a number of comedy albums and feature film comedies in the 1970s and 1980s.  Tommy Chong directed four of their films while co-writing and starring in all seven with Marin.
After Cheech & Chong disbanded in 1985, Marin starred in a number of films as a solo actor, most notablyBorn in East L.A., which was also his directorial debut,The Shrimp on the Barbie,Tin Cup, andOnce Upon a Time in Mexico. He made a cameo appearance as a dockworker inGhostbusters II. In 2004, he made his second appearance as a policeman, as "Officer Salino" in the film adaptation of John Grisham's holiday novelSkipping Christmas, under the titleChristmas with the Kranks, starring Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis. In 2009, Marin appeared as an auto mechanic inRace to Witch Mountain.  In 2017, he played the voice of a  Corrections Officer in thePixarfilmCoco.
Marin appeared in the Fox sitcomMarried... with Childrenas the voice of the Bundys'Briarddog, Buck; he voiced the character in three episodes:Look Who's Barking,Change for a BuckandAssault and Batteries. He made the transition to full-time television work when he co-starred on the short-livedThe Golden Girlsspin-offThe Golden Palace(1992–1993), and later withDon Johnson,Jaime P. Gomez, andYasmine Bleethin the police showNash Bridges(1996–2001), in which they played San Francisco police-detective partners. A movie of this series was rebooted in 2021.In recent years he has been active in playing supporting roles in films and performingvoice oversfor animated features. After appearing in a supporting role inJudging Amy, playing an independently wealthylandscape designer, Marin starred in the CBS sitcomRob, withRob Schneider.
Marin is a frequent collaborator of the directorRobert Rodriguez, who has worked with Marin seven times; the last two installments of theMexicotrilogy, theSpy Kidstrilogy,From Dusk Till DawnandMachete. He provided his voice for severalDisneyanimated films, most notably Tito theChihuahuainOliver & Company(1988),BanzaithehyenainThe Lion King(1994), Ramone inCars(2006) and its sequelsCars 2(2011) andCars 3(2017).  He also voiced Manuel in Disney'slive-action-animatedcomedy filmBeverly Hills Chihuahua(2008). Marin also played Pancho inThe Cisco Kid(1994), and reprised the Banzai role in the video gameKingdom Hearts II.
Cheech appears in several episodes of AMC'sLodge 49as El Confidente, a member of Lodge 55 in Mexico.
Marin has released two best-selling albums in the children's music genre,My Name is Cheech, the School Bus Driver(1992) andMy Name is Cheech, The School Bus Driver "Coast to Coast"(1997).  Both albums were released bilingually. In July 2007, the bookCheech the School Bus Driverwas released, written by Marin, illustrated by Orlando L. Ramirez, and published byHarperCollins.
In 2005, Marin lent his voice to the animated children's seriesDora the Explorer.He appeared in the episode "A Crown for King Juan el Bobo" as the Puerto Rican folk heroJuan Bobo.
In late 2006, Marin participated inSimon Cowell'sCelebrity Duets, having sung withPeter Frampton,Randy Travis,Clint Black,Aaron Neville, andAl Jarreau.  He was the fourth to be eliminated.
Marin had a recurring role in the hit television seriesLost, playing David Reyes,Hurley's father.
He was a co-host forWWE Rawon March 1, 2010, with his comedy partnerTommy Chong, inOklahoma City.
Marin also sings on the hidden track "Earache My Eye" onKorn's albumFollow the Leader. It is a cover of an original song by Cheech and Chong. The song is performed by a fictional singer named Alice Bowie, played by Marin, whose appearance consists of a tutu, a Disney mouse ear hat, nipple tassels, an eye mask and dress socks. This character is featured on the cover of Cheech and Chong's Wedding Album and the end of the duo's first film, Up In Smoke.
In 2009, he appeared in theHallmark ChannelmovieExpecting a Miracle.
On March 18, 2010, Marin beat journalistAnderson Cooperand actressAisha TyleronCelebrity Jeopardy!'s Million Dollar Celebrity Invitational. Cooper admitted he was "crushed" by Marin.Marin also won his semifinal round early May but lost in the May 6–7 final toMichael McKean. He had previously won the firstCelebrity Jeopardy!tournament in 1992.
In January 2012, he was one of eight celebrities participating in theFood Networkreality seriesRachael vs. Guy: Celebrity Cook-Off. He was eliminated in the third week of the competition.
Marin is an avid collector of Chicano art and started his collection in the 1980s. Two national touring exhibitions have featured works from his private collection. He feels that it's important to "use his celebrity status to call attention to what he saw as an under-appreciated and under-represented style of art".In collaboration with the city ofRiverside, California, and theRiverside Art Museum, Marin establishedThe Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art, Culture & Industry, in the City of Riverside, which opened June 18, 2022. Marin will be donating his collection of over 700 pieces of Chicano art, the largest collection of such art in the world.The center will provide a location for the presentation and study of Chicano art, and is expected to draw international attention.
He is an avid golfer, although he initially disliked the sport until he co-starredin the golf-themed comedyTin Cup. Marin also practices horse archery on a special course built on his private land.
On April 19, 2018, Cheech (as part of GLE Brands Inc) signed an agreement with Heritage Cannabis Holdings Corporation (CSE: CANN) to have exclusive rights to use cannabis and cannabis-related products utilizing the Private Stash brand throughout Canada for a period of 2 years, with the agreement automatically renewing for an additional year upon achieving various milestones.
In 2019, he was featured inThe Little Mermaid: An Immersive Live-to-Film Concert Experienceplaying the role ofChef Louisat theHollywood Bowl.
Marin was married in 1975 to Darlene Morley, who co-producedCheech & Chong's The Corsican Brothersand also played minor roles in earlier Cheech & Chong films under the name Rikki Marin.  The couple had one child anddivorcedin 1984. Marin married artist Patti Heid in 1986; they had two children and have since divorced. Marin married his longtime girlfriend, Russian pianist Natasha Marin, on August 8, 2009, in a sunset ceremony at their home.
Marin resides inMalibu, California.He is a fan of both theLos Angeles Ramsof the NFL, and theLos Angeles Dodgersof the MLB.