<Tr> <Th> Audio format </Th> <Td> Monaural </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Original release </Th> <Td> September 13, 1974 (1974 - 09 - 13)--July 21, 1978 (1978 - 07 - 21) </Td> </Tr> <P> Chico and the Man is an American sitcom that aired on NBC for four seasons from September 13, 1974 to July 21, 1978 . It stars Jack Albertson as Ed Brown (the Man), the cantankerous owner of a run - down garage in an East Los Angeles barrio, and (until his suicide late in the third season) Freddie Prinze as Chico Rodriguez, an upbeat, optimistic young Chicano who comes in looking for a job . It was the first U.S. television series set in a Mexican - American neighborhood . </P> <P> Comedians Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong (better known as the comedic duo Cheech & Chong) have stated that series creator James Komack followed the comedians on tour for three months; Chong wrote in his 2009 book Cheech & Chong: The Unauthorized Autobiography that Komack based the show on Cheech and Chong skits titled "The Old Man in the Park" and "Pedro and Man" and had acknowledged that fact to Chong after the television series' release . Cheech and Chong have both stated that Komack had originally approached them to star in the show, but they turned down the offer, preferring to stick to films . </P>

Who played chico in chico and the man