California Secretary of State Alex Padilla, whose task it is to encourage cannabis businesses to register with the state, found the perfect pitchman to help in the effort: Cheech Marin.
Marin, half of the Cheech and Chong comedy duo who brought “stoner comedy” to the mainstream in the 197os and ’80s, has been tapped by the state to record a public service announcement publicizing a website for cannabis entrepreneurs to register their company.
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In the PSA, Marin is hidden behind a computer screen as he answers questions from a marijuana entrepreneur. His face is fully unveiled near the end of the ad.
According to a report in the Sacramento Bee:
Padilla said he met Marin at a Los Angeles restaurant a few weeks ago and asked him to help with the announcement.
Marin said he was happy to assist.
“It knocks off a few hours of the community service I have to do,” he joked.
Actually, Marin said, the legalization of marijuana is a “generational shift,” and he wants to help people find success in the new cannabis industry. Marin is involved in his own pot biz, Cheech’s Private Stash, which sells his “curated” strains of marijuana.
Many new businesses are preparing to launch as the sale of adult-use recreational marijuana becomes legal in California on Jan. 1.
