I know it sounds like a stupid question, but when you stop to consider that Nintendo does the weirdest damn things when it comes to hardware and software security, it becomes only slightly more practical.

Anyway, I've tried searching Amazon and eBay for a new GC controller (an official one, not a cheap copy), and the only ones I could find are those sold by assholes who seem to equate "old" and "out of print" with "hey! they must be rare and expensive now!". That might apply to comic books and toys that you plan on leaving on a shelf for decades, but it's not a good way to sell hardware that someone's going to put to use right away. Especially if it's hardware that has a tendency to break easily (for me it's always the damn left shoulder trigger spring; before that, it was the N64's analog stick, which inevitably ground down to a fine powder; why did hardware quality drop so abysmally after the SNES?).

I've found that sometimes turning to East Asian import stores yield better results, probably because the guys running them aren't idiot little twelve-year-olds who actually realize the value of older electronics vs. a reasonable price meant to get aforementioned inventory out of the store. I mean, you can't wait around forever for someone to by that copy of Crash Bandicoot priced at $500 because that's the price you think it's worth. There's a point at which people stop and say "I don't need a mint condition set of Duke Nukem coasters that badly".

Anyway, back to the topic at hand, I've head tell of GC controllers not working on Wiis either because the GC controller wasn't a Nintendo brand controller or because the Wii was an older model or a combination of both. I wasn't aware that lockout chips were installed in peripherals these days, so I'd like to make sure before I buy.

I brought a cheap gamecube controller to play SSBM (or whichever one it is :P) on the Wii and it works fine.

ditto apart i played several gamecube games on the wii with it.

I bought 2 white gamecube from play-asia so I'm sure they were japanese. They worked just fine with my US gamecube and wii.
I've never heard of a third-party controller not working with the gamecube or wii though. I still have a Mad Katz gamecube controller that worked with my gamecube and wii but its quality was crap.

I have two Japanese controllers and they work fine on both my Gamecube and my Wii. Any stories of third party pads not working on the Wii are probably down to poor quality IMO.

Yep, that's a stupid question. :D

I know people who've imported Japanese controllers and they all work fine.

I found an old wireless (not a Wavebird, but it works) one tucked away in a box of crap I forgot about. It runs on two AA cells, so I might have to invest in some rechargeable ones. In the meantime, I found that Nintendo's own part shop has "factory certified" (read: refurbished) controllers for less than the cost of shipping from Play-Asia.