Feb. 2023 - Alaska Leaf

THE CULTURE ISSUE

THE 2022 ALASKA LEAF BOWL WAS LIT...

SO WHO’S READY FOR ROUND 3?

AWARDS CEREMONY & FREE EXPO AT THE EGAN CENTER COMING THIS SUMMER!

ACCEPTING ENTRIES

APRIL 1 - MAY 15, 2023 AT GREEN JAR - WASILLA

GENERAL ENTRY REQUIREMENTS

14 grams of flower, 7 grams of oil, 7 units of pre-rolls/carts/edibles/ topicals

$420 per entry, with $20 from each entry going to supporting a nonprofit TBA. All fees to be paid in full at time of dropoff.

Accepting entries starting April 1, 2023. Deadline for entry is May 15th, 2023.

2023 ALASKA LEAF BOWL CATEGORIES

Enter based on the category that best represents your flower’s flavor/ terpene profile ... or put it in the Open Category for the ultimate head-to-head competition for a Leaf Bowl award!

FLOWER

FLAVOR PROFILES:

• FUEL, OGS & CHEM

• EXOTIC FRUIT

• CITRUS & SAPS

• PURPS & DESSERTS

• OPEN CATEGORY COMPETITION

• CBD-RICH (1:1 OR BETTER - NO HEMP)

PRE-ROLLS

INFUSED/ENHANCED

TRADITIONAL

CONCENTRATES & EXTRACTS

FECO/RSO:

• HIGH THC

• HIGH ALTERNATIVE CANNABINOIDS

HYDROCARBON:

• PULL ‘N’ SNAP & SHATTER

• DIAMONDS & SAUCE

• BUDDERS & BADDERS

• CRUMBLES & SUGAR

SOLVENTLESS:

• FULL-MELT

• ROSIN

• TRADITIONAL HASH/BUBBLE HASH

CO2

CARTRIDGES:

• CO2

• DISTILLATE

• ALTERNATIVE CANNABINOID (CBD, CBG, CBN, ETC.)

• LIVE RESIN

• GENERAL HYDROCARBON

• SOLVENTLESS

INFUSED PRODUCTS

EDIBLES:

• BAKED GOODS

• CANDY

• DRINKABLES

• TINCTURES/CAPSULES/TABLETS

• GUMMIES

• OTHER TREATS

• ALTERNATIVE CANNABINOID TOPICALS:

• CREAMS/LOTIONS

• SPRAYS

• BEAUTY/SKINCARE

• TRANSDERMALS

EXPO BOOTHS & LIMITED SPONSORSHIPS AVAILABLE!

Bobby Black and Mike Ricker chat with the iconic stoner comedians on their newest roles.

WES ABNEY CEO & FOUNDER wes@leafmagazines.com

MIKE RICKER OPERATING PARTNER + AD SALES ricker@leafmagazines.com

TOM BOWERS CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER tom@leafmagazines.com

DANIEL BERMAN CREATIVE DIRECTOR daniel@leafmagazines.com

O'HARA SHIPE CONTENT DIRECTOR + WEB ohara@leafmagazines.com

MEGHAN RIDLEY COPY EDITOR meghan@leafmagazines.com

ABOUT THE COVER

Our magazines this month feature incredible photos of the iconic stoner comedy duo that has graced our screens for decades: the inimitable Cheech and Chong, who are back and bigger than ever with new careers, new lines and new roles in an expanding network of Cannabis entrepreneurial spirit and ascent. Our sincere thanks to legendary photographer Emily Eizen for taking on this assignment and delivering a remarkable portfolio of portraits, and the Cheech and Chong team for their help in fully realizing this truly epic cover shoot. See more photos from their photo sesh on our website, and see the alternate cover too!

WES ABNEY

Editor’s Note

Thanks for picking up The Culture Issue of the Leaf!

This month’s cover is graced by Cheech and Chong, the iconic stoner humorists who’ve represented Cannabis culture since 1971. Crossing generations with comedy and electric screen presence, they pioneered the plant at a time when using Cannabis was highly illegal. With today’s access to pot stores verging on excessive, it’s easy to forget the risk that buying weed represented in the ‘70s – let alone smoking joints on camera in a form of public protest and entertainment.

CONTRIBUTORS

OSCAR AVELLANEDA-CRUZ, PHOTOS

DANIEL BERMAN, PHOTOS

APRIL BLACK, FEATURES

BOBBY BLACK, DESIGN + FEATURES

JOSHUA BOULET, ILLUSTRATION

TOM BOWERS, FEATURES

AMANDA DAY, FEATURES

EARLY, PRODUCTION

EMILY EIZEN, PHOTOS

STEVE ELLIOTT, NATIONAL NEWS

MATT JACKSON, FEATURES

MIKE RICKER, FEATURES

MEGHAN RIDLEY, EDITING

O’HARA SHIPE, PHOTOS + FEATURES

TORENO WINN, STYLING

BRUCE WOLF, PHOTOS

Cannabis culture spread into the mainstream on the silver screen, rebranding the war on drugs with wit and taking the fear out of the weed equation. In many ways our current version of stoner culture can be defined by the vibe that Cheech and Chong created atop the echoes of the ‘60s hippie renaissance. Go to a weed event today and you’ll see plenty of tie-dye mixed in with friendly folks blending of all cultures, backgrounds and socioeconomic status. But while colorful clothes and glass define the look, the only thing needed to join the plant tribe is a smile and a bowl to smoke.

KATHERINE WOLF, FEATURES

LAURIE WOLF, RECIPES

We are creators of targeted, independent Cannabis journalism. Please email us to discuss advertising in the next issue of Alaska Leaf Magazine. We do not sell stories or coverage. We can offer design services and guidance on promoting your company’s medicinal, recreational, commercial or industrial Cannabis business, product or event within our magazine and on our website, LeafMagazines.com. Email ricker@leafmagazines.com to start advertising with Alaska Leaf!

CONNECT WITH ALASKA LEAF

We’re entering the ‘Goldilocks Age’ of legalization: Icons and individual consumers alike remember the scars and costs of prohibition. A new generation of stoners turn 21 each month in a world where dispensaries are as ubiquitous as liquor stores. It’s magical to see the worldview of Cannabis shifting –bringing youthful energy and hope which has lit a fire that cannot be put out. Reaching escape velocity, Cannabis is slingshotting from criminal activity to vending machines in a lifetime – and its effect on the arts, entertainment and larger world, shouldn’t be underestimated.

As I wrote last year – if Putin were puffin’ – he probably wouldn’t have invaded Ukraine. I believe we will see a radical transformation in global politics and humanity’s view of responsibility for one another, and our shared planet, once the plant is free to heal. Just look at Thailand’s seemingly overnight drug policy change: Weed has gone from a death penalty offense to a scene of international press, as a Cookies dispensary opens to the blessings of monks and the community.

The energy is right for this movement to grow. And perhaps that’s what brought Cheech and Chong back together, and to the forefront of the movement they planted seeds for 50 years ago. We certainly need weed heroes and while they’re far too cool for capes, it’s an honor to share their presence on the cover of Leaf Magazines. Please enjoy our cover interview by our own Bobby Black and Mike Ricker, with amazing photos by Emily Eizen styled by Toreno Winn in Los Angeles, and the rest of our unique Culture Issue. As I’ve said since June 2010 when the first Leaf magazine went to print – thank you for reading and for being a part of our beautiful Cannabis culture!

NORTHWEST LEAF / OREGON LEAF / ALASKA LEAF / MARYLAND LEAF / CALIFORNIA LEAF / NORTHEAST LEAF

“IT’S MAGICAL TO SEE THE WORLDVIEW OF CANNABIS SHIFTING –BRINGING YOUTHFUL ENERGY AND HOPE WHICH HAS LIT A FIRE THAT CANNOT BE PUT OUT. ”

COVER & INTERIOR PHOTOS BY EMILY EIZEN @EMILYEIZEN WARDROBE AND STYLING BY TORENO WINN @TORENO__ LOCATION BY THE PINK DONA @THEPINKDONA

ART DIRECTION BY DANIEL BERMAN @BERMANPHOTOS

LARROQUETTE WAS PAID IN WEED FOR ‘TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE’

John Larroquette’s very first acting gig was to provide the opening narration for Tobe Hooper’s 1974 ”Texas Chainsaw Massacre.” The actor did so as a favor, but a popular internet rumor has long claimed he also received a little weed for his troubles. While speaking with Parade, Larroquette confirmed the weed rumor as “totally true.“

“He gave me some marijuana or a matchbox or whatever you called it in those days,” Larroquette recalled. “I walked out of the [recording] studio and patted him on the backside and said, ‘Good luck to you!’”

Larroquette returned to provide narration for several of the “Texas Chainsaw Massacre movies,” including the recent Netflix sequel – but he revealed that he’s never actually seen any of them. “I’m not a big horror movie fan,” he said.

TENNESSEE DEMS WANT TO LEGALIZE

IFnew legislation passes this session, Tennessee could become the 22nd state to legalize the adult use of marijuana.

Sen. Heidi Campbell is one of the co-sponsors of the Free All Cannabis for Tennesseans Act – or FACT Act. “We know already that it’s popular across the state and across parties,” Campbell said, reports New Channel 5 Nashville. “People are already going across state lines to get Cannabis products.”

“In 2018, an MTSU poll showed 81% of Tennesseans support legalization in some form. To drill down, 37% say marijuana should be legal for adult use and 44% say it should only be legal for medicinal use.”

In 2018, an MTSU poll showed 81% of Tennesseans support legalization in some form. To drill down, 37% say marijuana should be legal for adult use and 44% say it should only be legal for medicinal use.

Sen. Campbell believes if people are already using Cannabis, Tennessee should be getting its share of the tax revenue. “We’re missing out on billions in revenue every year that could be put towards education, rehabilitation, mental health and all kinds of things that surround Cannabis,” she said.

NEW YORK CITY HOME TO 1,300 UNLICENSED POT SHOPS

ACCORDING TO THE NYPD, more than 1,300 illegal marijuana stores are selling pot without a license.

“I admit, I don’t think we ever talked about this scenario happening,” State Senator Liz Krueger said.

Senator Krueger worked on the state’s adult-use Cannabis legislation for about seven years, but admits that lawmakers never expected such an expansive untaxed market to pop up while the legal market was still being rolled out.

IS LEGAL CANNABIS COMING TO HAWAII? NEW BILL OFFERS HOPE.

HAWAII LAWMAKERS in January filed bills to legalize marijuana in the state. Advocates are optimistic that the reform may finally be enacted with a new pro-legalization governor in office.

Rep. Jeanné Kapela (D) and Sen. Chris Lee (D) sponsor the legislation in their respective chambers, alongside more than a dozen co-sponsors. The measures were partly informed by the recommendations that a state legalization task force developed last year.

“We now have a roadmap for legalizing recreational Cannabis in our islands.”

“We now have a roadmap for legalizing recreational Cannabis in our islands,” Kapela said. “Legalizing Cannabis is not just a matter of money, it is a matter of moralities.”

NEBRASKA SENATOR BACKING MMJ BILL

A Nebraska senator is kicking off the start of the new session with another attempt to finally legalize medical marijuana in the state.

Sen. Anna Wishart, a Democrat, has been fighting to enact the reform over the past several years – pursuing medical marijuana legalization through both the state legislature and activist-led ballot campaigns.

Now she’s filed a new bill to provide patients with qualifying conditions access to Cannabis if they receive a doctor’s recommendation. It appears to largely mirror a revised version of legislation that advanced in committee in 2021, but ultimately stalled out in the GOP-controlled unicameral legislature.

Should the legislation make it over the finish line, smoking marijuana and home cultivation would remain illegal.

global he U.S. Virgin Islands in late January legalized marijuana for adults 21 and older. This means the United States-owned territory joins several nations in the conservative Caribbean in finally relaxing their antiquated Cannabis laws.

U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS BREAKS NEW GROUND

T“We are bringing the opportunities to you, but you must also do your part to seize these opportunities,” said Governor Albert Bryan. Under the nascent industry, the cultivation, manufacture and sale of marijuana is legally allowed in the U.S. territory.

The Act improves upon the governor’s original proposal, with the inclusion of a robust social equity program and expansion of the expungement opportunities for marijuana-related arrests and convictions.

“Under the nascent industry, the cultivation, manufacture and sale of marijuana is legally allowed in the U.S. territory.”

During a signing ceremony, Bryan also issued a proclamation that allows persons convicted of simple possession of marijuana to apply for a pardon.

HEALTH & SCIENCE

DISPENSARY GIVES OUT FREE AUTHORIZATIONS FOR TEXAS VETERANS

Military veterans across the country struggle with PTSD and other ailments, and many are trying to find available treatment options. For some, rather than taking prescription medications, they’re opting for medical Cannabis, reports KXAN.

In Austin, goodblend – one of only three medical Cannabis operators licensed to operate in the Lonestar State – is giving away free Texas medical marijuana authorizations to veterans.

“these authorizations can cost between $200-$300.”

According to goodblend community relations manager Terrence Baugh, these authorizations can cost between $200-$300.

“It keeps them off the black market,” he said. “We want to make it very accessible and usable for them to be a part of this program – to energize and engage them in what Texas already has.”

percent of American voters now support the federal legalization of Cannabis.

patients are enrolled in Georgia’s long-awaited medical marijuana program, yet to be rolled out.

ALASKA LEAF BUDTENDER OF THE MONTH

JUAN CRUZALEY

OBVIOUSLY, YOU’RE SUPER AT HOME IN ANCHORAGE, BUT YOU SPENT YOUR EARLY CHILDHOOD OUT IN WESTERN ALASKA, RIGHT? Yeah, so I grew up in Sand Point – which is all the way out in the Aleutian Chain.

OH WOW! WHAT WAS IT LIKE GROWING UP ALL OF THE WAY OUT THERE? It’s kind of like growing up in the Valley but way smaller. I’d spend a lot of time with my cousins and riding four-wheelers. One half of my family is Mexican and one half is Aleut, so I still have a lot of family out there. I like making a joke with my wife where I ask her what she wants for dinner. She usually replies ‘you pick’ and I always answer ‘not Yup'ik, I’m Aleut.’

GET RIGHT OUT OF HERE WITH THOSE DAD JOKES (LAUGHS). I know, right?

WHEN YOU’RE NOT MAKING TERRIBLE PUNS, WE HEARD THAT YOU’RE SPITTING SOME BARS IN THE STUDIO. Yeah, I’ve been rapping since like 2014 under the name J-Cruu. I actually just did my second ever performance in December at Williwaw. It was rad because I got to perform with my buddy, Cody Banks, when we opened for [Bayarea rapper] P-Lo. It’s crazy to think people paid like $40 to go to the show and a lot of them didn’t even stay for the main act.

THAT’S AWESOME! WHAT IS THE ALASKA HIP-HOP SCENE LIKE? There’s always been a big scene, but it’s been a little bit underground. I think we have to be our own promoters and fight a bit more for it than rappers outside [of Alaska].

AS AN ARTIST, DOES CANNABIS PLAY A ROLE IN YOUR CREATIVITY? It helps and it doesn't. Sometimes, I'll smoke and I won't be able to do anything but chill. Other times, I can smoke and write three songs, or even go to the studio and smoke before I walk in, and then we do five, six songs in a night. Sometimes, smoking sends me down rabbit holes creatively and I can write some solid tracks.

WHERE CAN WE HEAR YOUR MUSIC? I’m on SoundCloud under J-Cruu, but I’ll be jumping on Spotify here in the next couple of months.

ASTHE UNCERTAINTY of 2020 COVID shutdowns gripped Anchorage, Juan Cruzaley found comfort in the “essential” industry of Cannabis. Now in his third year as a budtender with Uncle Herb’s, Cruzaley has found his stride at the company’s Boniface location. Last December, Cruzaley’s work was recognized by Anchorage Press readers who dubbed him the city’s Best Budtender.

WHAT ARE YOU TOKING ON THESE DAYS? I’ve been smoking a lot of Side Piece by Tanana Herb Company, but I also grow a few plants myself and have been working on flowering some Punch Breath I got from Scorpion Grass clones.

“SOMETIMES, I'LL SMOKE AND I WON'T BE ABLE TO DO ANYTHING BUT CHILL. OTHER TIMES, I CAN SMOKE AND WRITE THREE SONGS.”

ANCHORAGE TO HOMER

June 1st-Aug 31st

Monday – Friday

Departs Anchorage

Arctic & International – 724 W. International - Garrett’s Tesoro

Cooper Landing Wild- man’s 300pm

Soldotna Chamber of Commerce 500pm

All times are approx. Stage Line Summer Schedule

HOMER TO ANCHORAGE

June 1st-Aug 31st

Monday – Friday Departs Homer 830am 1242 Ocean Dr

Soldotna Chamber of Commerce 1015am

Cooper Landing Wildman’s 1115am

VISITING ALASKA

Locally owned and operated by a lifelong Alaskan, Stage Line offers passenger transportation, freight, parcel, and courier service, between Anchorage and the Kenai Peninsula. Our schedule includes, Anchorage to Homer, Cooper Landing, Soldotna, Kasilof, Ninilchik, Anchor Point. Homer to Seward, Soldotna, Cooper Landing. And any points in between! MP flag stops available! Private party charters available! Reasonable rates, saves time and money for travelling or your shipping needs.

One of the top 10 most scenic highways.

SEWARD TO HOMER

June 1st – August 31st

Mon Wed Fri

Departs Seward 100pm call ahead for pick up point

Cooper Landing Wild- man’s 200pm

Soldotna 300pm

All times are approx

HOMER TO SEWARD

June 1st - August 31st

Mon Wed Fri

Departs Homer 1242 Ocean Dr 900am

Soldotna Chamber of Commerce 1030am

Cooper Landing Wildman’s 1130

The Stage Line PO Box 353 Anchor Point, AK

The Stage Line 1242 Ocean Dr Homer, Ak 724 W International Anchorage, Ak Staging points only 907-868-3914 907-235-2252

E-mail: stage.line@yahoo.com www.stagelineinhomer.com

“Why fly? When you can enjoy the most beautiful ride on earth”

THE HASH FRONTIER GARDENS

Surrounded by trees and secluded from the main roads, Dana and Joe Giliam’s Wasilla home looks like any other dwelling in the area. But as you approach the house, a familiar earthy scent smacks you in the face, and it's abundantly clear that the Giliams are weed people.

“We originally bought a property in Anchorage but quickly realized that it was going to be hard to install enough filters to completely block the smell,” laughs Joe.

Although the Giliam’s property packs enough olfactory punch to rival a full-size commercial grow, they are one of the Mat-Su Valley’s newest limited grows. But that doesn’t mean the Giliams are new to Cannabis. Like many Alaskan growers, the Giliam’s Cannabis business began many years ago when they grew small-batch medicinal plants.

“I think we developed a reputation for growing high-quality, organic, pesticide-free Cannabis pretty early on,” says Dana. “We set out to help people who were dealing with chronic illness and cancer, so our focus was always on providing clean Cannabis that would help, not hurt, people whose bodies were already going through a lot.”

Initially, the Giliams started their small grow in their bedroom. But before long, demand increased and they slowly shifted the plants into their

FROSTY STRAINS

living room where they had more space. Despite demand, not everyone was thrilled about the expansion of their budding medicinal business.

Joe, who grew up Mormon, ran into resistance from his family. Traditionally, Mormons have been known for their unwavering abstinence from alcohol and other mind-altering substances such as caffeine and Cannabis. However, in recent years, some sects have begun to allow the use of medicinal Cannabis to ease the pain of terminal illnesses like cancer.

“I think my mom was one of the people who was most against the consumption of Cannabis, but on the same hand, she is really into essential oils, which has parallels to Cannabis,” explains Joe. “So, I definitely think a big part of what we want to continue to do with our grow is to educate people about the plant.”

Now recreationally licensed as The Hash Frontier Gardens, the Giliams continue to approach their cultivation with the same principles.

“We really believe that through education, you can help get rid of the stigma that still surrounds Cannabis. There are so many benefits and it can

be beneficial for people of all walks of life. It really comes down to finding what works for you, whether that’s edibles or smoking,” explains Dana. “We’re here to bring the highest quality product possible to the consumer and to make it easier for people to achieve the high that they are looking for.”

But producing high quality Cannabis comes at a cost. As the recreational market continues to cater to consumers who are looking for the highest possible THC percentages, many cultivators are faced with a dilemma: chase numbers, or produce quality strains with potentially lower numbers.

“It gets hard because a lot of great strains aren’t being produced because they’re either lower yield or have a lower number. So, a lot of those strains with great medicinal properties are being taken off the market because people want those numbers,” says Dana.

“I don’t think a lot of consumers understand that a higher THC percentage doesn’t mean a more intense high. Sometimes it feels like the market is oversaturated with lower quality, higher-yielding plants – but that’s not the kind of cultivators we are,” adds Joe. For Dana and Joe, the efficacy of their plants comes down to the terpenes – which explains why their garden, and surrounding property, are so fragrant.

“We’ve definitely gotten calls before where people smoked after work and the scent on their clothes was still so strong the next day that they had HR complaints,” jokes Joe.

While Dana and Joe seem to have found the key to producing standout buds, there is one part of the business that still eludes them: vertical integration.

“We definitely want to have our own dispensary in Anchorage and we have a concept for it, so that’s our next step. It might be a couple of years away but we are going to keep building our business and expanding,” says Dana. “This is our passion and our lifelong dream.”

“WE’RE HERE TO BRING THE HIGHEST QUALITY PRODUCT POSSIBLE TO THE CONSUMER AND TO MAKE IT EASIER FOR PEOPLE TO ACHIEVE THE HIGH THAT THEY ARE LOOKING FOR,” SAYS DANA.

Chocolate Mini Bars

Proof that great things come in small packages, the mini chocolate bars from GOOD Alaska deliver consistent dosing in deliciously rich flavor that’s perfect as a daily treat.

Chocolate has been delighting human senses for thousands of years in various forms, from the ancient Aztec cocoa drinks to the somewhat-less-classic Hershey's bar (at least in historical terms). We love chocolate so much that 7.5 million tons of the dark gold were consumed in 2022 alone.

This love affair with cocoa blends perfectly with Cannabis, whose earthy resins and terpenes blend seamlessly with chocolate in an undeniably satisfying union. Knowing we have a collective sweet tooth, we were ecstatic to hear that GOOD Chocolate Bars were going mini, delivering a perfect bite that packs a heady buzz. The minis come in two dosage formats and flavors, giving users a lot of control over their edible high. We started with the 50mg total packs that contain 50 individual 1mg servings. There is huge demand for micro-dosed products, which help deliver precise amounts of THC one yummy bite at a time. We found the Belgian Dark Chocolate 1mg pieces irresistible – with an earthy and creamy mouthfeel, plus a hint of sour fruit and Cannabis tang teasing the palate after the bite was finished.

EDIBLE BY GOOD ALASKA

Eating them by the handful happens, but where this product shines is allowing for a 2-3mg midday snack or a small end-of-theday buzz – instead of a 5 o’clock cocktail. Using these minis makes it easy to dial in your dose, especially remembering the edible mantra: You can always eat more, but you can’t uneat it once it’s consumed. These are a perfect option for new users or those with lower tolerances, and with 50 individual servings there’s an unlimited opportunity to create a custom serving size. For the high-dose stoners out there, the 100mg packages with 10mg pieces are just what the doctor ordered. The small bites allow for dosing up to 100mg without having to eat a large volume of food, and we honestly got to the end of each package still wanting more. The Swiss Milk Chocolate has a soft and creamy melt that smoothly delivers a palate-pleasing tingle, plus a hint of Cannabis that adds depth and character to the high quality chocolate base. Tasty enough to eat uninfused and with a guilt-free size that’s super convenient, the GOOD Chocolate Bar Minis should be at the top of your dispensary shopping list.

BELGIAN DARK CHOCOLATE: 1MG/PIECE, 50MG/PACKAGE SWISS MILK CHOCOLATE: 10MG/PIECE, 100MG/PACKAGE

"THE MINIS COME IN TWO DOSAGE FORMATS AND FLAVORS, GIVING USERS A LOT OF CONTROL OVER THEIR EDIBLE HIGH."

Open 7 days a week 8am - 11pm

4901 E. Blue Lupine Dr. Ste. E Wasilla, AK 99654

907-631-3800

MARIJUANA HAS INTOXICATING EFFECTS AND MAY BE HABIT FORMING.

Marijuana has intoxicating effects and may be habit-forming and addictive. Marijuana impairs concentration, coordination, and judgment. Do not operate a vehicle or machinery under its influence. There are health risks associated with the consumption of marijuana. For use only by adults twenty-one and older. Keep out of the reach of children. Marijuana should not be used by women who are pregnant or breastfeeding. #10008

CONCENTRATION, COORDINATION, AND JUDGEMENT. DO NOT

A COMPLEX

Eleven Roses Cartridge

AN EXPENSIVE DINNER that leaves you too full for fun. A bouquet of roses that wilt after a few days. A box of chocolates that is gone in a day. Valentine’s Day has become so ho-hum over the years! So, this year, how about spicing things up with something that will induce full-body relaxation, mellow vibes, and a sense of well-being? “What is this miracle gift?” you may be wondering. It’s none other than Top Hat Concentrates' Eleven Roses cartridge.

Top Hat Concentrates has become synonymous with premium CO2 oil and solventless CCELL-powered vape cartridges. However, they are upping their game with Eleven Roses. Beginning with

their brand new plant-based mouthpiece and fully biodegradable packaging, this cartridge is pumped full of love. But there’s more to be excited about than just the packaging. The cartridge is filled with CBD-infused full-spectrum oil made with organic hemp, and you can literally taste the difference. Our first tokes of this incredibly smooth smoking cartridge revealed a complex flavor profile that began with spicy cinnamon and ended with soft, fluttery floral notes. With each draw, the complexity of the terpene profile continued to unfold in a spectacular array of earthiness and sweetness, plus a hint of pine.

Although the flavor profile was complex, the high was pure, simple bliss. The high CBD and CBG content provided major pain relief and muscle relaxation that intensified with each puff. Because the THC percentage was a little lower, we didn’t experience a disorienting high – rather, a gentle wave of peace of mind slowly but surely flooded our senses.

Bottom line, the subtle high coupled with the pain-relieving effects of CBD make this a great choice for both newbies and seasoned smokers. And while the real-deal roses might be all the rage this month, Eleven Roses from Top Hat provides a year-round, heartwarming high.

FLAVOR PROFILE THAT BEGAN WITH SPICY CINNAMON AND ENDED WITH SOFT, FLUTTERY FLORAL NOTES.

CULTIVATED BY BONAH-FIDE CULTIVATION

@BONAHFIDE_CULTIVATION

AVAILABLE FROM GREEN JAR

WASILLA & HATCHERS PASS

Magical notes of skunky blueberries burst out of the jar in a floral bouquet of fruitiness that’s complemented by a rich orange and rubbery funk.

BLUEBERRY

Willy Wonka immortalized the innocent blueberry with the spoiled girl who turned purple, swelled up like a pufferfish and ultimately floated away at the behest of resident Oompa Loompas. While the filmmakers surely didn’t intend the scene as a drug reference, it really fits perfectly with the stoney and delightful Blueberry strain. And around these parts, you won’t get in trouble for sneaking a toke!

Grown by Bonah-Fide Cultivation, this Leaf Bowl award-winning flower is sweet, loud and proud. Magical notes of skunky blueberries burst out of the jar in a floral bouquet of fruitiness that’s complemented by a rich orange and rubbery funk, balancing the sweetness to deliver a complex flavor profile that smells good enough to eat. The buds are light green and frosty with a healthy amount of red hairs and dense structure –featuring a perfect kiefy snap evident of a careful curing process that’s sure to deliver a clean smoking experience.

First tokes are deep and earthy, with the sweetness of the berries hitting the palate on exhale and lingering with a tingle that opens airways and brightens eyes. Repeated tokes deliver sweet and smooth clouds that begin to slow the mind as a heady euphoria settles over the body like a warm jacket. It’s an old school buzz that makes you feel perfectly stoned. Grown for many years in the Valley, this Blueberry is a true 49th state classic – intense and beautiful, just like the Last Frontier.

24.99% THC | EUPHORIC HYBRID

BLUEBERRY

Dive into fields of blueberries like a hungry bear on a mission with this strain worthy of the name Bonah-Fide – with the spelling as proof of the stoney buzz these berry buds provide.

INFUSED BLUNT INFUSED BLUNT INFUSED BLUNT

still smokin’

THE REBIRTH OF CHEECH AND CHONG

Legendary Cannabis

LONG BEFORE Harold and Kumar, Jay and Silent Bob or Beavis and Butt-Head … before “Friday” or “How High,” “Half Baked” or “Pineapple Express” –there were the founding fathers of Cannabis comedy: Cheech and Chong.

In a series of irreverent films throughout the 1970s and early ‘80s, they portrayed a pair of silly, stereotypical stoners who perfectly captured the spirit of the ’70s and established them as cultural icons that have stood the test of time. During this exclusive interview with the Leaf, the legendary comedy duo reflect back on how their partnership has evolved over their heady and hilarious, half-century-long careers.

WHEN CHEECH MET CHONG

A Mexican-American from Los Angeles, Richard Marin (nicknamed “Cheech” as a baby by his uncle, who remarked that he looked like a little “chicharron” aka fried pork rind), grew up the son of an LAPD officer in East L.A. An anti-war activist in college, he moved to Canada after graduation to avoid being drafted, where he spent about a year working odd jobs: making pottery, delivering carpets and freelance writing.

“I was writing for a rock and roll magazine up there called Poppin, and the publisher said to me, ‘I got this guy you should meet – he’s doing some weird stuff,’” Marin recalls.

“That guy” was a half-Chinese, half-Scotch-Irish musician from Calgary named Thomas Chong. Throughout the 1960s, Chong made a living managing nightclubs around Vancouver while trying to make it big as the guitarist in a band called Bobby Taylor & the Vancouvers. The group signed with Motown in 1965, released an album and a hit single (which Chong co-wrote), and even played with top acts like the Jackson Five and Jimi Hendrix.

In 1967, while on tour in Chicago, he happened onto the Second City comedy club and was “mesmerized” by his first exposure to improv. So when he was fired from the band after being late to a gig (because he didn’t have a green card), Chong switched gears: In 1969, he took over the back room of his brother Stan’s strip club, The Shanghai Junk, and launched his own improv group called City Works.

Then, one fateful day, after delivering a carpet next door, Cheech walked into the club and introduced himself to Tommy. As Marin’s publisher predicted, the two immediately hit it off.

“He was running this improvisational theater troupe in Vancouver’s first topless club, and he invited me to join,” says Marin. “I started out

writing for the group but eventually started doing all the parts. Eventually, when the troupe fell apart, Tommy and I stayed together.”

When asked what inspired him to become a comedian, Marin jokes: “The strippers!” then adds sarcastically, “It was either that or go into politics.” CONTINUES NEXT PAGE >>

comedy duo Cheech and Chong are back – and this time, they’re finally making a new movie together!

THE REBIRTH OF CHEECH AND CHONG

POTHEAD PERSONAS

It was while doing sketch comedy at Shanghai Junk that the two aspiring comics began developing the stoner characters that would become their trademarks: Cheech, the Chicano vato “Pedro,” and Chong, the burnout known only as “Man” – a character he based mainly on a homeless hippie named Strawberry (a name they later appropriated for Cheech’s shellshocked cousin in their first film) that he sometimes let sleep in the lighting booth at the club. Though neither of them smoked as much as the bumbling burnouts they played on stage, they’d both loved Mary Jane since their first dance with her in their late teens.

“I was 19, in my first year at college,” Marin recalls of his first time getting high. “I was a straight arrow: altar boy, choir boy, straight-A student … and then one time at a party in my apartment, my roommate passed this cigarette to me. ‘What is this?’ ‘It’s weed, man.’ ‘Oh, OK – how do you do it?’ He showed me how to do it, and after I took my first hit, the music sounded better, and I said to myself, ‘OK – so what else have they been lying about?’”

It was a similar circumstance for Chong.

“I was 17 years old, still trying to get through high school,” he recounts. “I used to hang out at this jazz club because even though I didn’t play jazz, I could get in free if I brought my guitar. One night, the owner of the club – a Chinese bass player named Raymond Ma – handed me a Lenny Bruce record and a joint. I put the joint right in my pocket, so he said, ‘Oh, OK’ and lit up another one, and we got high. I remember the music I was listening to when it hit me was “Lonely Woman” by Ornette Coleman. I’d never heard music like that. I could even see the woman in the window waiting for her lover.

After I got home, I listened to the Lenny Bruce record, and the next day, I quit school.”

“I THINK OUR PARTNERSHIP IS BETTER TODAY THAN IT EVER WAS,” MARIN SAYS CONFIDENTLY. “I THINK EVERYTHING CHANGED WHEN WE GOT OUR OWN ACCOUNTANTS,” JOKES CHONG, THEN ADDS MORE SERIOUSLY, “NO, BUT WE … WE GREW UP.”

The duo spent a little over a year honing their material, and after City Works disbanded in February 1971, they toured down the West Coast back to Los Angeles – where their pothead personas were better received than in Vancouver.

“The audience back in L.A. liked those characters right away because we reminded them of people in their neighborhood,” says Chong. “You know, because they didn’t have Chicanos in Canada.”

FLYING HIGH

Later that year, they signed a record deal with famed producer Lou Adler’s Ode Records and recorded eight albums over the next several years – most of which went gold and were nominated for Grammys – including 1972’s “Big Bambu” (designed to look like a giant pack of rolling papers) and 1973’s “Los Cochinos,” which won them their first and only Grammy.

In 1978, Adler directed the duo’s first feature film: the now classic “Up in Smoke.” Much like their live act and albums, most of the movie’s dialogue was improvised – reportedly using only a yellow legal

pad with what Chong once described as a “loose roadmap” written on it as their guide. Though not well received by critics, the film was wildly popular with hip, young audiences and became a huge financial success.

In the decade to come, the duo went on to release seven more films, including “Nice Dreams” (1981), which featured cameos by Paul “Pee-wee Herman” Ruebens and LSD guru Timothy Leary, and “Still Smokin” (1983) – a combination of sketches and live performances shot mainly in Amsterdam.

“I wanted to do a Cheech and Chong film festival, but Paramount wanted us to do a live concert,” Chong explains. “Eddie Murphy had just done “Raw,” so they wanted us to kind of copy that.”

“So we did both instead,” Cheech chimes in.

Of all of their films, Chong admits that “Still Smokin” was his favorite one to make.

“I think ‘Still Smokin’ was the most fun because we did quite a few classic bits, like ‘The Invisible Wrestler’ that we had only done live, and I knew we’d never do again,” he explains. “I figured, this is our one chance to see our live act on screen, so we did – we got ‘em on screen.”

“And it was in Amsterdam,” Cheech chuckles, “so we had a great time.”

BREAKUP & REUNION

Despite their fun times during filming, tensions had been rising between them for some time. Their sixth film, “The Corsican Brothers” (1984) – in which they played 18th-century French swashbucklers instead of their usual stoner characters – flopped. And Chong, who had directed four of their six films, was reportedly exerting ever more control over the team’s creative direction. Sadly, in 1985, things came to a head – and Cheech and Chong decided to split up.

For the next two decades, each pursued their own solo career: Appearing in dozens of films and television shows, as well as countless cameos and voiceover roles (including several animated Disney characters). And though their friendship had severely soured during that period, it managed to endure.

“We’d talk, but it was intermittent because there were a lot of bad feelings on both our parts,”

Cheech says. “But I always knew that we’d eventually get back together in some form, because the connection was just too strong, and the people wanted it so much.”

It took over 20 years (and a generous offer from Live Nation), but that reunion finally happened in 2008, when they put their differences aside and agreed to embark on a new standup tour, “Light Up America.”

“It was a nice way to get back with Tommy in a format that we didn’t argue about,” says Marin, who joyously recounts the first time they shared a stage again. “He said, ‘I’m doing this gig with my wife Shelby at The Comedy Store down in San Diego … why don’t you just show up and come out of the audience as a special guest,’ and that’s what I did. It was amazing – we had no rehearsal whatsoever, but it’s such a part of our DNA that after all those years being apart, I walked up on stage and it was like we had performed the day before.”

The “Light Up America” tour was followed by the “Get it Legal” tour, a concert film and an animated movie. There was even talk of them doing a new feature film together – something like a stoner version of “Grumpy Old Men” – but that project never materialized, thanks to some of the same creative differences that first drove them apart.

Putting aside their past issues, though, both men feel that the dynamics of their relationship have improved significantly since then.

“I think our partnership is better today than it ever was,” Marin says confidently.

“I think everything changed when we got our own accountants,” jokes Chong, then adds more seriously, “No, but we … we grew up.”

HEADY HORIZONS

Their reconciliation has paved the way for three exciting new projects. The first is their new Cheech and Chong’s Cannabis Company launched in California in August of last year – which not only brings their individual, existing weed brands (Cheech’s Stash and Tommy Chong’s Cannabis) under one banner, but introduces several new “joint” product lines named after aspects of their films, including Love Machine, Low Rider, StaDank-Ohh, and their most popular release, Cruise Chews.

The second project is an upcoming documentary about their careers that’s recently wrapped filming after decades of work.

And the third? That long-awaited new feature film, which they say is already written and set to begin filming within the next few months. When asked what it’s about or whether they’ll be reprising their

classic stoner characters in it, the duo is uncharacteristically tight-lipped.

“We can’t talk too much about it because we don’t want to give anything away,” says Chong. “All we can tell you is that it’s going to be incredible. We got some surprises, man.”

Although they haven’t made a film together in decades, they’re confident that they’ll be able to connect with today’s younger audience — particularly Chong, who’s portrayal of Leo in “That ’70s Show” introduced his classic character to a whole new generation (a role he’s recently reprised in the new sequel, “That ‘90s Show”).

“The zoomer generation, they love the old Woodstock, peace and love mindset … and when you go back to the ‘oldies but goodies’ types, we’re at the top of the list,” says Chong. “Because when you think about it, really what we were doing was young guys playing like old guys. And so now, we’re old guys playing young guys.”

“We have a unique brand of humor that’s simultaneously really dumb and really smart in the same thing,” Marin offers. “It appeals to everybody on the intellectual spectrum at the same time.”

“Yeah – we’re kinda like Charlie Chaplin,” Chong adds. “He was a clown who became the lowest common denominator in American culture, and as a result, everybody could look down on him. But he could hobnob with the richest or the poorest – it didn’t matter. And I think that’s what’s happened with Cheech and Chong. When we first did it, it was shocking – but eventually, we showed the world how a Chicano and Hippie could be very lovable, and that connected everybody to us.”

So if you happen to be one of those rare stoners who have never actually seen a Cheech and Chong movie, do yourself a favor – go get as high as possible and watch “Up in Smoke.” You’ll be glad you did.

CHEECHANDCHONG.COM | @CHEECHANDCHONG

Location by The Pink Dona | thepinkdona.com @thepinkdona

See more exclusive photos on our website at LeafMagazines.com.

“WE HAVE A UNIQUE BRAND OF HUMOR THAT’S SIMULTANEOUSLY REALLY DUMB AND REALLY SMART IN THE SAME THING,” MARIN OFFERS.

Cheech and Chong’s iconic 1978 film “Up in Smoke” made the pair stars. (ALAMY STOCK)

SOLVENTLESS EXTRACTS USING PURE, ALASKAN GLACIER WATER FOR EXTRACTION

WARNING Marijuana has intoxicating effects and may be habit forming and addictive. Marijuana impairs concentration, coordination, and judgment. Do not operate a vehicle or machinery under its influence. There are health risks associated with consumption of marijuana. For use only by adults twenty-one and older. Keep out of the reach of children. Marijuana should not be used by women who are pregnant or breast feeding.

As one of the first celebs to sink their teeth into the legal landscape back in 2015, Leafs by Snoop came out of Colorado and a partnership with Canopy Growth. He continued to solidify his colossal status in Cannabis with Casa Verde, an investment company with a deep client deck ranging from edible and cultivation companies to media and METRC. These days, the Doggfather is digging into Death Row Cannabis – a brand new endeavor with renowned Cali cultivator AK.

Cookies began as a clothing and lifestyle line but Berner had bigger plans. He cornered a cultural shift in the community, impacting everything from branding to breeding and paving a path to a billion-dollar empire. Now, his brands boast nearly 60 retail locations around the globe, where Cookies and sister brand Lemonnade partner with local producers in each area to cultivate their Cannabis products.

HIGH NOTES

Taking hits and making hits with the stoniest folks in music.

Musicians have been humming a melody to Mary since someone strummed the first guitar. But these days, a shifting legal landscape means artists can make money getting loud in more ways than one. A bounty of branding opportunities brought a wave of celebrity-backed Cannabis companies and (love it or hate it) new ones are cropping up regularly. But not all celeb brands come from seasoned supporters. Let’s highlight a few hit makers with a legacy of lighting up long before legalization.

B-Real

Stoniest Album

“Black Sunday”

Cypress Hill is synonymous with the sesh. B-Real has backed the bud since day one of his career and since 2018, he’s been busy bringing Dr. Greenthumb to life. The aptly-titled dispensary chain has stuck close to its L.A. roots, with five California locations and its own brand of in-house cultivation (Insane) powered by the same TRP LLC crew that has its hands in Cookies and Death Row Cannabis.

wiz khalifa

Wiz’s 2010 mixtape “Kush & Orange Juice” seemed to solidify a place in many toker’s tracklists and inspire a new generation of cultivar-curious consumers.

method man

“Kush & Orange Juice”

Khalifa Kush (KK) is rumored to have been Wiz’s personal puff of choice for years before his endeavor to brand the bud. But in 2016, he entered the market debuting a partnership with Tryke Companies under the fan-famous strain name. The brand has since expanded to include a full lineup of infused offerings that spans six states.

Stoniest Album

“Tical”

As a group, Wu-Tang wove a legendary part of hip-hop’s history. Clan members like Method Man had a masterful presence in more than just music. Cult classics like “How High” cemented his place in the po(t)ulation and inspired terms like “TICAL.” It’s a term Mr. Meth coined for Cannabis that, since 2020, has doubled as an acronym for his brand’s vision: Taking Into Consideration All Lives. You can find the full line of flower and infused goods in six states.

“The scientifical, mystical one. Growin’ my crops with the rays of the sun.”

“Look up in the sky, it’s a bird, it’s a plane. It’s the Funk Doctor Spot smoking buddha on a train.”

“And I’m gonna re-up as soon as the fire’s gone. Smokin’ OG Kush from another time zone.”

Stoniest Album

snoop dogg

Stoniest Album

“Mac + Devin go to High School”

“Can we get a motherfuckin’ moment of silence for this small chronic break?”

Stoniest Album

“Light it up, what it taste like? Lemonade, when it’s made right.”

Stoniest Album

“Worldwide Underground”

erykah badu willie nelson

Her eccentric style, soulful songs, and free-flowing artistic expression exude an unmatched energy. But Badu’s bringing a bit of her vibe to viewers like you, in her latest creative collaboration with the folks at Cookies. A recently released video on Berner’s page shares a conversation in which the pair look forward to the lemony traits of “That Badu” – the company’s very first female-backed brand featuring Mad Cow Genetics.

DAMIAN MARLEY

Stoniest Album

“Stony Hill”

mendo dope

Stoniest Album

“Heroes”

To nearly no one’s surprise, Willie Nelson was not far behind Snoop in securing a multi-state operation when things began to legalize back in 2012. Willie’s Reserve spread through several states with rapid succession, sharing flower, pre-rolls and carts grown by over 20 independent farms in Colorado, Washington, Oregon and California. Like Berner, Willie looked to his community to spread the plant’s promise, pairing up with fellow country stars like Merle Haggard and Margo Price.

Jr. Gong jumped into the ganja scene with the social justice-oriented company, Evidence. The brainchild of Ocean Grown Extracts, Evidence operates out of a Coalinga, California facility that makes focusing on their mission mandatory. That’s because the former prison now plays home to plants grown with purpose, as Evidence has partnered with The Last Prisoner Project to donate one dollar from every bag sold. But Damian is no stranger to this cause and has acted as an LPP advisor since 2019.

GRIZ

Michigan EDM artist GRiZ isn’t a stranger to the sensi and by 2017, he’d already released a self-titled strain. His bright, saxed-up, musical makings set the stage for any solid sesh. If you’re in the state of Michigan, you can even tune in and toke up with something selected by the man himself. Pure Options, an established local brand has partnered with GRiZ to provide four custom cultivars for his latest flower enterprise: Astro Hippie.

Stoniest Album

“Planters of the Trees”

Mendo Dope is about as grassroots as our list gets. Brothers Old E and Bleezy started their Cannabis culture journey back in 2013, frequently filming in their own California garden or with the late legendary breeder Subcool for YouTube. They built a fan following and since then, have had their hands in everything from community growing classes to a seed company (Planters of the Trees) and flower line (Mendo Dope Farms).

margo price

Stoniest Album

“All American Made”

Margo Price’s strain with Willie’s Reserve isn’t the only reason this Tennessee toker has made our list. Listen to “All American Made” (a song title that now doubles as a strain) a little closer and you’ll catch her calls to Reagan’s War on Drugs. For a country singer/ songwriter, she’s surprisingly candid about her Cannabis use. Recently, she’s even announced an edible endeavor with the independent, family-owned-and-operated Illinois company Nature’s Grace.

slightly stoopid

The stony, summer sounds of Slightly Stoopid pair perfectly with their sub-brand of curated “Cannabis, wellness, and spirits.” Stoopid Strains offers several Cali Cannabis collaborations with established companies for a variety of products. Seabright Farms’ “Stoopid Hammerheads” offer fans a flower, diamond, oil and kief-coated pre-roll. But the band also collaborated with Cali companies Space Coyote Cannabis and Humboldt Seed Company, as well as Washington’s Playa Grande Cannabis.

“Chasing the Golden Hour Pt. 3”

“Gettin’ high and havin’ fun.”

“A shifting legal landscape means artists can make money getting loud in more ways than one.“

“You’re the prettiest of flowers, girl me can’t complain. When I’m with you I feel so high I rise above the rain.”

“So I took it in my hand and headed home to grow this ‘juana. I put it in the soil and became a ganja farmer.”

“But I was just a child, unaware of the effects. Raised on sports and Jesus not the usual suspects.”

“No explanation needed. When I’m high I don’t conceal it.”

Stoniest Album “Chronchitis”

“And we would ride around the park ‘til it’s after dark. Pumpin’ the trunk with the windows rolled up, puff.”

“Roll me up and smoke me when I die.”

Stoniest Album

For those who choose to stand out, be di erent, and create their own path

With a Little Help From My Friends

THE SETUP

On August 28, 1964, The Beatles played the first of two sold-out shows at the Forest Hills Music Festival in Queens, New York. After the concert, they headed back to The Delmonico Hotel on Park Avenue near Central Park. There, throngs of overzealous fans restrained by barricades awaited them out front, while inside, police patrolled the lobby and corridors to prevent any incidents.

Once in their suites on the sixth floor, the band was relaxing and enjoying some dinner with their manager Brian Epstein and personal assistant Neil Aspinall. Soon to join them was folk rock superstar Bob Dylan, who was being driven down from Woodstock by his road manager Victor Maymudes for the occasion. On the way, they’d stopped to pick up writer Al

It’s one of the most legendary seshes in history: the night that Bob Dylan got The Beatles stoned for the first time and changed the course of their career – and by extension, popular music – forever. Here’s how that historic encounter allegedly went down, as compiled from the various perspectives of those who were there.

Aronowitz – a mutual friend of Dylan and The Beatles – who had arranged the momentous meeting. Upon arriving at the hotel, Dylan’s posse was stopped by police, who – having no idea who they were – wouldn’t allow them into the elevator until Beatles’ road manager Mal Evans came down to escort them up.

McCARTNEY’S MEMORY

According to quotes compiled from his memoir “The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present” and different interviews he’s done over the years, here’s how McCartney remembers the meeting:

“We were in a hotel suite … and Bob Dylan turned up with his roadie. …We’d ordered drinks from room service – scotch and Coke and French wine were our thing back then – and Bob had disappeared into a back room… we thought maybe he’d gone to the toilet. But then Ringo

[Starr] came out of that back room looking a bit strange. He said, ‘I’ve just been with Bob, and he’s got some pot!’ And we said, ‘Oh, what is it like?’ And he said, ‘Well, the ceiling is sort of moving, coming down.’ And that was enough. We all ran into the back room, going, ‘Give us a bit, give us a bit!’ … And he gave us a puff on the joint.”

ALTERNATE ACCOUNTS

According to others in attendance, however, events unfolded a bit differently. In his Beatles biography titled “The Love You Make: An Insider’s Story Of The Beatles,” Epstein’s assistant Peter Brown gives a more detailed account. According to Brown, after their introduction, Dylan was offered the drinks they had on hand, but only wanted cheap wine – which Evans was then asked to procure. They also offered Dylan and Aronowitz

account. According to Brown,

Poster and ticket for the 1964 Forest Hills Music Festival.

some “purple hearts” [a type of upper], which they politely declined – instead, suggesting they all smoke some weed. Upon hearing Dylan’s offer, The Beatles all looked at each other, then at Epstein, who timidly admitted, “We’ve never smoked marijuana before.”

In reality, that wasn’t entirely true: The boys had actually tried smoking pot a few years earlier in 1960 but apparently didn’t get high from it, as George Harrison would later recount in “The Beatles Anthology”: “We first got marijuana from an older drummer with another group in Liverpool. We didn’t actually try it until after we’d been to Hamburg. I remember we smoked it in the band room in a gig in Southport. … Everybody was saying, ‘This stuff isn’t doing anything.’ It was like that old joke where a party is going on, and two hippies are up floating on the ceiling, and one is saying to the other, ‘This stuff doesn’t work, man.’”

In any case, Brown makes it clear that The Beatles’ lack of herbal experience took Dylan by surprise:

Dylan looked disbelievingly from face to face. “But what about your song?” he asked. “The one about getting high?”

The Beatles were stupefied. “Which song?” John managed to ask.

Dylan said, “You know …” and then he sang, “And when I touch you, I get high, I get high …”

John flushed with embarrassment. “Those aren’t the words,” he admitted. “The words are, ‘I can’t hide, I can’t hide, I can’t hide …’”

At that moment, Dylan no doubt realized it would now be his historic duty to get The Beatles high for the first time. Luckily, Maymudes had brought along a “sizable bag” of weed for just such a situation. Wary of the substantial police presence in the halls, though, Dylan suggested the group adjourn into one of the adjoining bedrooms.

THE SESH

When it comes to who rolled the joints, once again, accounts vary. According to some, it was Maymudes who did the rolling. According to beatlesbible.com, however, it was Dylan: “Aronowitz was unskilled in rolling joints, so asked Dylan to do the honours; Dylan wasn’t much better, and much of the grass ended up in a fruit bowl on the room service table.”

“Bob hovered unsteadily over the bowl as he stood at the table while he tried to lift the grass from the baggie with the fingertips of one hand so he could crush it into the leaf of rolling paper which he held in his other hand,” Aronowitz wrote in his book “Bob

Dylan and The Beatles.” “In addition to the fact that Bob was a sloppy roller to begin with, what Bob had started drinking had already gotten to him.” Regardless, most seem to agree it was Dylan who lit the first joint, then handed it to Lennon, who declined – instead passing it on to his ‘royal taster’ Ringo. Unaware of stoner etiquette, Starr allegedly smoked the entire thing himself rather than passing it around the circle, prompting Maymudes to then roll everyone their own joints. They all began smoking, and before long, as Starr told Conan O’Brien in 2012, “We got high and laughed our asses off.”

“We expected something instantaneous, so we kept puffing away and saying, ‘It’s not working, is it?’” McCartney wrote in his memoir. “And suddenly, it was working. And we were giggling, laughing at each other.”

“I don’t remember much what we talked about,” Lennon later said in “The Beatles Anthology.” “We were smoking dope, drinking wine, and generally being rock ‘n’ rollers and having a laugh, you know, and surrealism. It was party time.”

Here’s how The Guardian’s Andrew Harrison set the scene: “Ringo Starr … collapsed in a giggling mess. Brian Epstein became so stoned he could only squeak, ‘I’m so high, I’m up on the ceiling.’ Paul McCartney believed he’d attained true mental clarity for the first time in his life and instructed Beatles’ roadie and major-domo Mal Evans to write down everything he said henceforth. Dylan, meanwhile, lost his cool and began answering the hotel phone by shouting, ‘This is Beatlemania here!’”

In the 1997 biography “Many Years From Now,” McCartney elaborates on his perceived pot-induced profundity, during which he repeatedly declared that he was “thinking for the first time, really thinking.”

“I’d been going through this thing of levels during the evening,” McCartney writes. “Mal gave me this little slip of paper in the morning, and written on it was, ‘There are seven levels!’ […] And we pissed ourselves laughing. I mean, ‘What the fuck’s that? What the fuck are the seven levels?’”

In his book “Another Side of Bob Dylan: A Personal History on the Road and Off the Tracks,” Maymudes reported that McCartney enjoyed the experience so much that “The following morning, Paul came up to me and hugged me for 10 minutes and said, ‘It was so great … it’s all your fault because I love this pot!’ He went into his thoughts on music while on it and how it made him feel. ‘It was just magical,’ he said.”

“We thought, ‘Wow, this is pretty amazing, this stuff,’’’ McCartney’s memoir reads. “So it became part of our repertoire from then on.”

UNDER THE INFLUENCE

From that day forward, The Beatles began consuming Cannabis on an almost daily basis – using the expression “let’s have a larf” as a 420-like code for “let’s get high.”

“The Beatles had gone beyond comprehension,” Lennon once confessed. “We were smoking marijuana for breakfast. We were well into marijuana, and nobody could communicate with us; we were just glazed eyes, giggling all the time.”

The band’s newfound love for the herb quickly manifested in their music – crediting both Dylan and marijuana as influences on their next record, “Rubber Soul,” with Lennon going as far as referring to it as their “pot album.” Their follow-up, 1966’s “Revolver,” included the song “Got to Get You Into My Life” – which McCartney eventually admitted was “entirely about pot.”

“This song is my ode to pot,” Paul said on BBC Radio in 2021. “What we had to get into our lives, it seems, was marijuana … it was something that entered our lives, and I thought it was a good idea to write a song. Only I’d know that I was talking about pot.”

Marijuana’s influence was even more blatant in their 1967 masterpiece “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” – with Ringo signing about “getting high with a little help” from his friends, and McCartney singing about how he “had a smoke” and “went into a dream” in “A Day in the Life.”

“Do you know what caused ‘Pepper?’” McCartney once told a reporter. “In one word: drugs. Pot. ‘Sgt. Pepper’ was a drug album.”

with a little help” from his friends, and McCartney singing about how he “had a smoke” and “went into remain a bit foggy, one thing appears crystal clear:

Though the exact details of their first sesh may remain a bit foggy, one thing appears crystal clear: Cannabis affected The Beatles in a profound way – infusing their music with introspective complexity and transforming the lads from Liverpool from mere pop performers into the revolutionary artists they were destined to become.

For our podcast & more Cannabis history content visit worldofcannabis.museum/cannthropology.

“We were smoking marijuana for breakfast,” Lennon once confessed. “Nobody could communicate with us; we were just glazed eyes, giggling all the time.”

I KNOW, HARSH TITLE – BUT SOMEONE HAD TO SAY IT. Because we’ve all found ourselves subjected to that annoying jackal of a song. And the melody is so phenomenally irritating, that it has now become a guaranteed way to jack someone with an unsuspecting prank. Just play Baby Shark when their attention is completely preoccupied with something of actual significance in their life … and watch their temperature rise.

What once was cute is now diabolical and far from funny. Because the moment it embeds into your mind, you’ll swear it’s a glitching computer chip that you can’t locate to destroy. Kinda like getting chased by a swarm of singing bees.

Baby Shark makes nails on a chalkboard sound like a guided meditation.

Now, for me this is personal because I suffer from an affliction called repetitive thought loops. This is where an idea, or a sound, will uncontrollably replay in your head. And with Baby Shark, I become incapable of prying myself from this playschool of plinking keyboards and perpetual repetition where the “doo doo doo doo doo doo doos” ricochet off my brain borders. I go to sleep with it.

I wake up with it. It affects my conversations. It creates insomnia sadness.

And there are no baby steps with Baby Shark. Sure, there’s the Jaws soundtrack lead in, but once the first note hits, it becomes heavy metal for kids. It’s like the audio version of one of those infinity mirrors you see in a fun house. But with a fun house, you can leave it where you found it. Not Baby Shark. It preys on you like an unapologetic spam call.

I’ll bet even sharks hate Baby Shark. In fact, I’d like to cover the creators of Baby Shark with chum and throw them into a Baby Shark tank. And by the way: Everything is NOT awesome! Unless we’re singing about weed.