Ken Davitian

Ken Davitian
Davitian attending the "Night of 100 Stars" for the 82nd Academy Awards viewing party at the Beverly Hills Hotel, Beverly Hills, CA, on March 7, 2010
Born	Kenneth Davitian (1953-06-19) June 19, 1953 Los Angeles, U.S.
Occupation	Actor, comedian, restaurateur
Years active	1991 – present
Spouse(s)	Ellen Davitian (1977–present)

Kenneth "Ken" Davitian (Armenian: Գեղամ Դավթյան Geğam Davt'yan) (born June 19, 1953) is an American actor of Armenian descent, who is best known for his role as Borat's producer (Azamat Bagatov) in the 2006 comedy film Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, in which he speaks Armenian throughout the film.

Early life and education

Kenneth Davitian was born on June 19, 1953 in an Armenian-American family in East Los Angeles. His father had served in the Russian Red Army during World War II and had been captured by the Germans, and eventually found his way to Los Angeles with its sizable Armenian community. Davitian, his father and grandfather were in the waste removal business.

His teenage idol was Burt Reynolds, who greatly influenced his choice of becoming an actor. Davitian attended and graduated from Garfield High School. He briefly attended East Los Angeles Community College.

Early business career

When Davitian turned eighteen, his father gave him his first garbage route in Montebello, CA. In 1992, he created a subsidiary company, DESONA, for the purpose of contracting with the country of Mexico for waste disposal services. In August 1993, DESONA won a multimillion-dollar contract with the Mexican City of Naucalpan to implement a solid waste collection, transportation and processing system. On March 21, 1994, the City of Naucalpan annulled the agreement after receiving independent legal advice that there were irregularities with the contract (unsubstantiated rumors were that a Mexican official held a gun to Mr. Davitian's head and demanded he leave the country immediately without any of his property or assets). In the lawsuit, the investors claimed to represent a U.S. parent company called Global Waste Industries, Inc., which was alleged to have 40 years of experience and to have provided similar services to the residences, businesses and industries in the Los Angeles area. On March 21, 1994, the City of Naucalpan annulled the agreement after receiving independent legal advice that there were irregularities with the contract. DESONA filed suit against the city for breach of contract and eventually lost in a Mexican federal court. On March 17, 1997, DESONA filed a NAFTA suit in ICSID, claiming that the cancellation of the contract was a violation of Articles 1105 and 1110 of NAFTA and asking for up to $19 million in damages. On November 1, 1999, an ICSID panel dismissed the case. Among other things, the panel found that Global Waste did not have 40 years of experience, but was founded in 1991 and went into bankruptcy 14 months later, and since Mr Davitian was precisely 40 years old in 1993, a claim of 40 years’ experience was preposterous; that DESONA only provided two reconditioned vehicles and not the 70 state-of-the-art disposal trucks promised; and that a variety of other representations which had been made by the investors, including promises to build a power plant, were “so unreasonably optimistic as to be fraudulent.” The panel concluded that “the claimants entered into the Concession Contract on false pretenses, and lacked the capacity to perform it.” All claims by claimants was dismissed and DESONA lost the suit. Interestingly, Mr. Davitians wife was also a claimant. Ms. Ellen M. Baca was a Claimant as a result of a property settlement in her divorce from Mr Davitian, and appears to have had no substantive role in the project." Most likely the divorce was a sham to protect assets since the two have never separated and she continues to accompany him to Hollywood photo ops years after the so-called divorce.

Acting career

Early in his career, he appeared in the movies Fat City, American Raspberry, Bikini Summer, Maximum Force, Frogtown II, and Sexual Intent. In 1994, he appeared in the movie The Silence of the Hams, a spoof of The Silence of the Lambs.

Davitian has appeared in television series such as Chuck, Ghost Whisperer, Becker, ER, Arli$$, The Shield, Gilmore Girls, Six Feet Under, Boston Legal, The Closer, and Mind of Mencia. He has also made appearances in music videos, such as The Smashing Pumpkins' "Stand Inside Your Love".

He appeared in the film Meet the Spartans as Xerxes, with the movie's narrator playing on his previous role as "that fat guy from Borat". He also starred in the 2008 film, Stone & Ed, in which he portrays a drug lord named Señor Gordo. Upcoming films with Davitian include The Prankster, Melvin Smarty, and You May Not Kiss The Bride. Davitian also had a cameo in the 2011 film The Artist.

Davitian starred in the short Last Day Foundation with comedian Jon Lovitz, a piece written by one of his sons, screenwriter Aaron Davitian.

In his appearance in the 2011 television series The Cape, his role in Borat is referenced as his character's store is assaulted by muggers, who yell at him: "Come on, Borat!".

Restaurant ventures

Davitian founded a restaurant in 2003 called the Dip, which was located in Los Angeles. His son Robert runs his hot dog restaurant "The Dip" in Sherman Oaks, CA, which boasts a hot dog, conceived by Charlie Sheen, called the "Charlie Sheen Dog with Tiger Blood".

Filmography

Year	Title	Role
1991	Bikini Summer	Max
1999	Shandra The Jungle Girl	Diego
2000	Our Lips Are Sealed	Mobster
2002	The Shield	Armenian Mobster
	May	Foreign Doctor
2003	S.W.A.T.	Uncle Martin Gascoigne
	Holes	Igor Barkov
	A Man Apart	Ramon Cadena
2006	Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan	Azamat Bagatov
2007	South of Pico	Nick
	Lucky You	Poker Player
2008	Meet the Spartans	Xerxes
	Get Smart	Shtarker
	Soul Men	Ardesh Kezian
2009	Chuck	'Uncle' Bernie
	Lonely Street	Motel Owner
	Not Forgotten	Father Salinas
2011	The Cape	Store Owner
	The Artist	Pawnbroker
2013	Walk of Shame

External links

• Ken Davitian at the Internet Movie Database
• Ken Davitian is enjoying, very much, his Hollywood high five
• Guardian – First Sight