In the satirical new film “Thank You for Smoking,” an ambitious tobacco lobbyist makes enough enemies on the Hill that he ends up running for his life.

Aaron Eckhart, best known as Julia Roberts’s biker boyfriend in “Erin Brockovich,” stars as Big Tobacco’s point man. Katie Holmes of “Dawson’s Creek” plays the Washington Post reporter who turns his head, and William H. Macy plays a Southern senator with a taste for the ladies.

“Thank You for Smoking,” adapted from the best-selling book by former Bush 41 speechwriter Christopher Buckley, will be filming on location in D.C. this month for  release later this year.

Honors for Rep. Farr, Montel Williams & Tommy Chong

The Marijuana Policy Project will celebrate its 10th anniversary in Washington and Los Angeles in early May and will honor two men it says have worked to protect the use of medicinal marijuana. Rep. Sam Farr (D-Calif.) and TV talk-show host Montel Williams.

A third, more curious honoree is Tommy Chong, the actor/comedian who is famous for his pot-smoking movies such as “Up in Smoke” with Cheech Marin.

While Farr has fought to protect patients and caregivers who use and grow marijuana legally, Williams, who has made numerous visits to Capitol Hill on behalf of this cause, uses marijuana to treat multiple sclerosis symptoms. 

Chong, a former marijuana user who beat drugs by learning to salsa dance, faced criminal charges in 2003 following a police raid. He had distributed thousands of bongs and pipes online through his California company, Nice Dreams Enterprises. He was jailed for nine months and fined $20,000.

“We are giving him what we call the Courage Under Fire Award for enduring what he went through,” said Bruce Mirken, the project’s spokesman. “Our view is that this large raid that he was part of was a complete waste of taxpayer dollars. It’s very clear that they singled him out because of who he is. This man has shown incredible grace under pressure.” 

Shaquille O’Neal on Capitol Hill

NBA basketball star Shaquille O’Neal, who plays for the Miami Heat, will be on the Hill today at a press conference where he will become a spokesman for the Safe Surfin’ Foundation to help protect kids using the Internet.

O’Neal will be sworn in as an “honorary deputy marshal” to the group, which works to educate the public about Internet crimes against children.

The press conference is scheduled to take place at 6:30 p.m. in 1302 Longworth. Lawmakers who are set to appear at media event include Reps. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), Virgil Goode (R-Va.) and Jim Moran (D-Va.).

Sen. Frist, herding dogs

In the Know would like to extend its heartfelt apologies to Tucket and Camo Frist, the dogs whose boss is Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.). Last week ITK reported that the senator had no dogs of his own and merely adopted two that staffers bring into his office. Wrong. Frist has two pooches at his Washington home. The staff dogs are office-hours substitutes.

The two at home are Tucket, 7, and Camo, 4, black and yellow Labradors, respectively. Frist and his wife, Karyn, have had them since they were puppies. Amy Call, Frist’s spokeswoman, said the Frists had a lab named Teysha, who died of lupus two years ago.

The Frists have a menagerie. Call said the family has had rabbits, a parrot, guinea pigs and Izzy, a 12-inch iguana who managed to get loose and stay on the run in the family home for a month. (Let’s hope Frist runs a tighter ship amongst Senate Republicans.)

Press secretary loses mother in tragic car accident

In the Know would like to offer condolences to Marcie Ridgway, the press secretary to Sen. George Voinovich (R-Ohio). Her mother, Marcy, was recently killed in a car accident in Burleson, Texas. Members of the Hill community held a fundraiser in her honor Friday night at Top of the Hill for a scholarship that was set up in her name. The scholarship is called the Marcela C. Ridgway Trinity High School College Fund. People who wish to contribute to the fund may do so by mailing donations to Summit Bank.

Edited by Betsy Rothstein. Tips, sightings and complaints: This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it . Elana Schor and Jonathan E. Kaplan contributed to this report.