Sunday, Aug. 17, 2008

Top 10 stoners in pop culture

By Amy Tiedge, Cox News Service

Did anyone in your college dorm have that poster of Bob Marley, uh, exhaling? Isn't Fast Times at Ridgemont High a classic? Did you buy that one-hit-wonder Afroman album just for the song Because I Got High?

If you answered, "Dude!" to any of these questions, you may want to climb aboard the Pineapple Express. Now in theaters, Express is the latest in an increasingly long list of films revolving around pot and the dudes who smoke it.

But don't think its star Seth Rogen (who also starred in Superbad and Knocked Up) is carving out a new niche in entertainment media -- in fact, much of America apparently thinks weed is pretty funny, and, hey, so do we. Now we're not advocating illegal activity here -- so relax, man. But it's hard to argue the entertainment value stoners can provide.

Whether it's political or comedic, the use of weed in movies, music and TV has created a whole genre of entertainment.

We filtered through marijuana's most notorious appearances in American pop culture and came up with our top 10 greatest stoners of all time.

1. Bob Marley: This reggae legend and Rastafarian tops our list for his smooth, intimate beats and his belief in solidarity -- and his fondness for the occasional reefer. Legend has it, he was even buried with a marijuana bud.

2. The Dude: The lead character from The Big Lebowski (played by Jeff Bridges) is "high" on our list because we all know that movie wouldn't be nearly as funny without his pot-smoking ways.

3. Cheech and Chong: Arguably, these two clowns kicked off pop culture's closet obsession with weed in their comedy Up in Smoke, so we're putting them in the No. 3 spot because even though that movie wasn't all that funny, it opened up doors for many that are.

4. Nancy Botwin: The suburban-mom-turned-pot-dealer played by Mary-Louise Parker on Showtime's comedy/drama Weeds made us all look at our neighbors a little differently.

5. Dave Chappelle: He had to make our list for his buzzed antics as Thurgood Jenkins, who steals medical marijuana for his friend's bail money in the cult-classic Half Baked, and for his many weed jokes on Comedy Central's sketch-comedy series Chappelle's Show.

6. Harold and Kumar: Can a movie solely based on an attempt to quench marijuana-smoking induced munchies with a trip to White Castle really be that entertaining? With these two blitzed buddies, yes, it can.

7. Snoop Dogg: He's been arrested four times for marijuana-related charges, and has referenced the drug in many of his popular songs. Hey, with the hundreds of hours of community service he's got left, Snoop's preference for weed might actually benefit a few folks.

8. Willie Nelson: Since the country music legend's 2006 arrest for possession of more than 1.5 pounds of dope, ol' Willie hasn't exactly been discreet about his opinions on marijuana legalization.

9. Jay and Silent Bob: Take a modern-day Odd Couple and add a little dope dealing outside stores, and that’s already pretty funny. Have them appear in all of Kevin Smith's movies (well, except Jersey Girl, which doesn't count anyway), and that's even funnier. All we can do now is hope they'll be back for a Clerks 3.

10. Bill Clinton: Just kidding. We know he never inhaled.