That recently proposed Cheech and Chong reunion movie may be up in smoke--at least for the next nine months.
Tommy Chong, one half of the pot-happy duo, was sentenced Thursday to nine months in federal prison and fined $20,000 for peddling bongs and other drug accoutrements over the Internet.
The 65-year-old comedian was busted last February for operating an online head shop and was the first to plead guilty as part of Operation Pipe Dreams, Attorney General John Ashcroft's crackdown on black-market distributors of drug paraphernalia over the Web.
Drug Enforcement Administration agents smoked out Chong after purchasing bongs and other pot props from Chong Glass, the now defunct Website run by Nice Dreams Enterprises, which takes its name after one of Cheech and Chong's stoner comedies.
The goods were then delivered to an undercover shop in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, a small, conservative town northwest of Pittsburgh that doesn't take kindly to potheads, even famous ones.
Investigators impounded those and other Chong Glass wares, including "thousands of marijuana bongs and pipes," after conducting raids in his Gardena, California, offices and other head shops around the county.
Chong had asked for leniency from U.S. District Judge Arthur J. Schwab, who instead threw the book at the comic. After serving his time in the federal lockup, Chong will be saddled with a year of probation.
The stone-funny actor, who appeared remorseful when he entered his guilty plea in May, didn't help his case. According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Chong made light of his predicament outside the courtroom, even suggesting it would make a good scenario in his next movie.
Prosecutors also cited an online chat hosted by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel in which Chong was asked how he felt about the feds targeting pot smokers. He jokingly replied, "I feel pretty bad, but it seems to be the only weapons of mass destruction they've found this year."
Those remarks didn't sit well with the judge, who ignored pleas from Chong's attorney to delay punishment to have time to examine other sentencing options, such as confining Chong to a halfway house or home detention.
In court documents, Schwab also voiced displeasure with Chong over the lack of financial records given to the court, speculating that Chong might be trying to hide profits from the illicit venture. Schwab initially indicated he might toss Chong behind bars for a year and slap him with the maximum fine of $250,000, an amount prosecutors argued was necessary since they claimed he was worth $2.8 million and could easily come up with the cash.
A number of Chong's friends wrote in asking for clemency, including his agent, Michael Blake, who said Chong has "fans all over the world that would respond to his message that you can get higher on life without using drugs."
Chong's publicist, Brandie Knight, said the comedian and his family, who were expecting something akin to a slap on the wrist, were shocked by the sentence.
"He's actually really disappointed because everyone else involved with this got home detention, and he's going to jail," said Knight. "He doesn't have a record, he's never been in trouble before, and he's the one going to jail for nine months."
Knight also suggested the comedian is being made an example by the feds.
Now Chong is facing a seriously bad trip. The sentence forces the postponement of his reunion with old pal Cheech Marin in a new comedy, their first collaboration since 1985's music-video compilation Get Out of My Room. Ironically, Cheech and Chong were to have starred as anti-drug counselors in the film.
Chong, who most recently had a recurring role as, yes, a stoner on That '70s Show, remains free on bail and has been taking his comedy act across the country. The Canada native is expected to report to federal prison within the next few weeks.