Born in East L.A. is a 1987 American comedy film written and directed by Cheech Marin of the Cheech & Chong comedy team.

The film is about a Mexican-American from East Los Angeles who is mistaken for an illegal alien and deported. It is based on a novelty parody song (1984) of Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the U.S.A.". Written by Marin and released on the 1985 Cheech & Chong album Get Out of My Room, the parody was made a music video the same year. Marin used the song as the basis of his first solo film. It was distributed by Universal Pictures and later released on VHS and DVD.

Rudy Robles (Marin) is told by his mother to pick up his cousin Javier (Paul Rodriguez) at a factory before she leaves for Fresno. Robles arrives shortly before immigration officials raid the factory looking for illegals. Because he is carrying no identification, and his mother and sister are not available to verify he is a US citizen, Robles is deported with the illegals to Mexico.

Ironically, Robles cannot speak more than very simple Spanglish, though he is fluent in German from having served in Germany in the United States Army.

East Los Angeles (often shortened to East L.A. or East Los or in Spanish El Este de Los Ángeles) is an unincorporated area and census-designated place (CDP) in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is located immediately east of the Boyle Heights district of the City of Los Angeles, which is the eastern edge of the City in this area; hence the name "East L.A." East L.A. is well known as a major hub of Hispanic (especially Mexican) population and culture in the region. As of the 2010 census, the area had a total population of 126,496, up from 124,283 at the 2000 census. The CDP area includes the separate community of City Terrace, which is also an unincorporated area. East Los Angeles is represented by Gloria Molina on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. The community receives its police service from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, and fire service is provided by the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

East Los Angeles is located at 34°2′N 118°10′W / 34.033°N 118.167°W / 34.033; -118.167 (34.0315, -118.1687). East Los Angeles lies directly east of downtown Los Angeles.

Los Angeles (ⁱ/lɒs ˈændʒələs/ loss-AN-jə-ləs; Spanish: [los ˈaŋxeles], which is written Los Ángeles; British pronounciation /lɒs ˈændʒəliːz/ loss-AN-jə-leez) with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in the state of California, and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of 468.67 square miles (1,213.8 km²), and is located in Southern California. Often known by its initials L.A., the city is the focal point of the larger Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana metropolitan statistical area and Greater Los Angeles Area region, which contain 12,828,837 and nearly 18 million people respectively as of 2010, making it one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world and the second largest in the United States. Los Angeles is also the seat of Los Angeles County, the most populated and one of the most ethnically diverse counties in the United States, while the entire Los Angeles area itself has been recognized as the most diverse of the nation's largest cities. The city's inhabitants are referred to as "Angelenos".

Richard Anthony "Cheech" Marin (born July 13, 1946) is an American comedian, actor and writer who gained recognition as part of the comedy act Cheech & Chong during the 1970s and early 1980s, and as Don Johnson's partner, Insp. Joe Dominguez on Nash Bridges. He has also voiced characters in several Disney films, including Oliver and Company, The Lion King, Cars, its sequel and Beverly Hills Chihuahua.

Marin's trademark is his character's thickly Mexican-accented voice. This is part of a comic persona, rather than a natural accent (Marin was born and raised in the U.S.).

Marin, a Mexican American, was born in Los Angeles, California, the son of Elsa (née Meza), a secretary, and Oscar Marin, a policeman in the LAPD. Marin was born with a cleft lip, which has long since been repaired. Although he speaks Spanish and uses it in some of his movies, he is not particularly fluent.

Marin's nickname "Cheech" is short for "chicharron", a fried pork skin that is a popular snack in Mexican cuisine and a favorite of marijuana smokers afflicted with "the munchies", and the nickname's alliteration with Chong's surname made "Cheech and Chong" an obvious choice for the name of the duo. The name of this character gave rise to the popular term "cheeched", meaning "under the influence of marijuana, usually at a relatively high dose".

Cheech & Chong are a Grammy Award-winning comedy duo consisting of Richard "Cheech" Marin and Tommy Chong, who found a wide audience in the 1970s and 1980s for their films and stand-up routines, which were based on the hippie and free love era, and especially drug culture movements, most notably their love for cannabis.

The duo released many successful comedy record albums, and starred in a series of low-budget films, becoming a successful comedy team. Some of their best-known comedy routines and songs include "Earache My Eye", "Basketball Jones", "Santa Claus and His Old Lady", and "Sister Mary Elephant". Perhaps their all-time most famous line is "Dave's not here", from their self-titled debut album.

Their early success culminated with the release of their first feature-length movie, Up in Smoke, in 1978. Relatively successful, it became something of a cult classic and was successful enough to warrant a sequel, Cheech & Chong's Next Movie, in 1980, and Nice Dreams in 1981. These were followed by Things Are Tough All Over (1982) and Still Smokin' (1983). The pair attempted to shy away from stoner comedy with 1984's Cheech & Chong's The Corsican Brothers but the film was universally panned by critics and fans alike.