doing okay [Music] [Applause] that of course is Cheech and Chong everybody loved those guys back in the day back in the day teach Marin is not only famous for those stoner comedies and other Hollywood Productions his passion project that was collecting Chicano art now his collection the largest in the country has a permanent home in Riverside California Anthony Mason took a visit to the museum affection called the Cheech and he got listen to this a tour that's pretty got a tour from the actor himself this is kind of the centerpiece yeah this was commissioned for the museum by the De la Torre Brothers in the lobby you're greeted by a 26 foot tall lenticular installation of an Aztec Earth goddess it almost feels alive it is alive you could see something new every time you look at it yeah this is the new Cheech Marin Center for Chicano art and culture in Riverside California your name's over the door yeah is that cool I've got that in as soon as I possibly could you know what should we call this but the Cheech would be a good name it's a great name I think so too it is so gratifying that I don't really dwell on that so much I just watch the people come in and watch them enjoy it all right thanks for all of you bro we're so proud of this thank you thank you for coming here how's that feel it's beyond a dream you know I never dreamed this dream it's too big a dream oh my God look at that look at that Cheech donated more than 500 paintings drawings and sculptures to the new Museum that bears his name chicanoort he says isn't a style of painting it's more a flavor of the Mexican-American Community I always call the John Coltrane of Chicano penis because he puts the paint on with such spontaneity works by dozens of artists like Wayne Alanis Healey I describe it as Norman Rockwell meets Jackson Pollock it's a drip painting but it's figurative and this one jumped off the wall at me I got whoa what this one here it was a painting by Margaret Garcia Chicago you know this is by Franco Romero the rest of the paleteros the paleteros are ice cream man so this is MacArthur Park and and they were going to try to clean up MacArthur Park because there was gangs and there was trouble so what they did is they send them the SWAT team to arrest the ice cream man and you can see it I mean this is like the little kids with the Popsicles over their head who's that guy oh that's the Chicano Mona Lisa King of Chicano art that's really great this is by elor Torres all the painters at some point they go if I paint a picture of Cheech he'll probably buy it [Music] born in East L.A cheats started collecting Chicano art about 1985. it's an addiction my name is chich and I'm an art addict what do you think that addiction is all about I think it's about love of the subject I've been a collector of anything since I was little kid marbles baseball cards stamps anything what's your name isn't it on there on the license man yeah that's it man that's my name Richard Cheech Marin made his name of course as part of the cannabis infused comedy team Cheech and Chong Mexican Americans don't like to get up early in the in the morning but they have to so they do it real slow their success and other acting roles allowed Cheech to invest in his passion I was the perfect storm I I knew what the art was I had money to collect it and I had a celebrity in order to proselytize for it Maria Esther Fernandez is artistic director of the Cheech he wanted this work to be seen and I think that's where he diverges from other collectors and so he knocked on doors and he wasn't always well received but he persisted ah man I was a stoner comedian with this collection and it was always kind of like a push back there at the beginning none of the museum directors wanted to put their head on the Block it's one of the most wonderful Chicano expressions of Spiritual Awakening that I've ever seen Cheech was determined to tour his collection taking it to some 50 museums around the country in 2002 to the Smithsonian and what we were saying was his exhibit is Chicano is American because you cannot say American without including that part of the Latino Prime [Music] then in 2017 the city of Riverside with a population more than 50 percent Latino wanted to find a new mission for its old Library Riverside came to you yes that is the part that I never expected didn't understand what they were saying at first you want me to buy a museum I'm doing pretty good but I don't know if I'm Museum Rich no no we want to give you the museum you give us the collection we'll take care of it we'll be okay you know let's go and jump off the cliff you know and then away we went after a nearly 13 million dollar renovation the Cheech was born and then this goes around and it's been dipped in blood all these Hearts oh how does this rank with your movies oh your comedy you know I'm equally proud of both but the pride that emanates from this one is is beyond anything Cheech is still making movies three in the last year alone including the romantic comedy shotgun wedding are you still collecting yeah I don't even try not to you know I mean I'll fake it anymore because I I'm not a zillionaire to say hey send over two tons of that art you know and that's why I work all the time I work at home I can get that painting because there's still masterpieces of Chicano are being made by the best artists right now but there's no Greater Joy than standing in front of a new painting like wow cool you know that's the best part of it and now he's sharing it with everybody I gotta tell you I love this Museum the art is fabulous the building is great it's about an hour east of LA totally worth the trip take it it's really a landmark because I there's no other Museum in the country like it well you can see his passion for it too I love how it came about when he said you know I'm doing okay but I don't know if I'm a museum museum I hope I could do that but basically he had the collection they had the building and they said come and bring it and it it's all the result of all his work and his love of all of these artists and building them up you've been known to collect a piece or two anything in there you'd like to take home listen I went to cheech's house once I wanted to take it all home I mean he's got a great eye and and it's just great stuff yeah so much clips of seeing him back in the day you can't help but crack up yeah it's so funny thank you Anthony always good to see you we'll be right back [Music]