Tommy Chong

He married Maxine Sneed in 1960 and had two daughters with her; Robbi and Rae Dawn. The couple split in 1970.

He married Shelby Fiddis in 1975 and the couple has three children’ Paris, Gilbran and Precious. Apart from his biological children, he also adopted Marcus Chong, who is a prominent actor today.

He is a marijuana advocate and is a sponsor of the usage of marijuana.

Thomas B. Kin Chong was born on May 24, 1938 to Stanley Chong, a Chinese truck motorist and Lorna Jean, a waitress of Scots-Irish and French ancestry.

While he was still a young boy, the family shifted to Calgary, Alberta to a traditional neighborhood.

While he studied at Crescent Heights High School, he played the guitar to earn a few dollars a week. He later dropped out of the school because he never showed any interest in academics.

In the early 1960s, he was the guitarist for a group called ‘The Shades’. The group then moved to Vancouver, British Columbia and changed its name to ‘Little Daddy & the Bachelors’ before assuming the name, ‘Bobby Taylor and the Vancouvers’.

In 1965, the group signed a record deal with Gordy Records and recorded their first album. Their debut single, ‘Does Your Mama Know About Me’ peaked at the no. 29 position on the Billboard Hot 100.

The group got divided and Tommy Chong was fired by Motown producer, Johnny Bristol. After being fired, he decided to form his own improv, stand-up troupe. He got together with Richard ‘Cheech’ Marin and formed the famous comedy duo, ‘Cheech & Chong’, debuting in 1971.

The duo went on to entertain audiences with their indomitable stage presence and their superb comic timing. Chong released his first self-titled comedy album, ‘Cheech & Chong’, along with Cheech. The album became one of the greatest hits. The next year, they released their second album ‘Big Bambu’.

From 1973 to 1976, the hilarious duo went on to release more comedy albums such as ‘Los Cochinos’, ‘Cheech & Chong’s Wedding Album’ and ‘Sleeping Beauty’.

In 1978, he appeared in his first comedy feature-film titled ‘Up in Smoke’ along with Cheech. The film also featured Edie Adams, Ton Skerritt and Stacy Keach. The next year, he released an album with a soundtrack titled ‘Up in Smoke’ with his partner.

‘Cheech and Chong’, the self-titled album released in 1971, is considered one of Chong’s greatest achievements. The album became extremely popular considering it was the first album by the comic duo. It featured at the #28 position on the Billboard 200 and was also nominated for ‘Best Comedy Recording’ for the Grammy Awards.

The duo’s second album, ‘Big Bambu’, released in 1972, once again became extremely popular with the masses. It received positive reviews from the ‘Rolling Stone’ and was deemed as one of the most ‘cleverly done’ albums. This album was also nominated for ‘Best Comedy Recording’ at the 15th Grammy Awards.