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| colour = #F0E78C
| colour = #F0E78C
| name = Borat Sagdiyev<br />Борат Сагдиев
| name = Borat Sagdiyev<br />Борат Сагдиев
[[Paramount Comedy 1]] before being picked up by [[BBC Two]]'s Comedy Nation. This early version of Borat was nearly identical in looks and demeanor to his latest incarnation but was as yet unnamed. Initially, the character claimed to be from [[Albania]] before ultimately settling on [[Kazakhstan]].<ref>{{Cite book
|url=http://www.lexingtonbooks.com/Catalog/SingleBook.shtml?command=Search&db=^DB/CATALOG.db&eqSKUdata=073912336X
|title=The Many Faces of Sacha Baron Cohen: Politics, Parody, and the Battle over Borat
|author=Robert A. Saunders
|publisher=Lexington Books
|year=2008
|page=42
|isbn=073912336X
}} ISBN 073912336X ISBN 9780739123362</ref> The character remained dormant while Cohen concentrated on his [[Ali G]] persona for [[Channel 4]]'s ''[[The 11 O'Clock Show]]''. With the subsequent success of Ali G and the creation of ''[[Da Ali G Show]]'' (also on Channel 4), Cohen regularly revisited his Borat character.

==Fictional character biography==ijuoireoijfrpeforetporythythetyhthan 1,000 cinemas. Cohen celebrated the release of the film with a host of promotional '[[in-character]]' interviews.<ref>{{cite web
| url = http://www.stv.tv/out/showArticle.jsp?source=opencms&articleId=/out/dontmiss/Borat
| title = Borat interview
| accessdate = 2006-12-22
| work = STV
| publisher = SMG, PLC.
}}</ref> The film expanded its release on the second weekend to 2,566 screens, where it took in an additional $29 million.<ref>{{cite web
| url = http://www.the-numbers.com/movies/2006/BORAT.php
| title = Movie Borat
| accessdate = 2006-12-22
| work = The Numbers
| publisher = Nash Information Services, LLC.
}}</ref>


In 2007, Cohen won a [[Golden Globe]] for "Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical Or Comedy". With a production budget of $18,000,000 the film has grossed $128,501,044 in the United States of America and another $128,848,505 internationally, for a worldwide gross of $257,349,549 by mid-March 2007.<ref>[http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=daily&id=borat.htm Boxofficemojo page on Borat's earnings]</ref>
In 2007, Cohen won a [[Golden Globe]] for "Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical Or Comedy". With a production budget of $18,000,000 the film has grossed $128,501,044 in the United States of America and another $128,848,505 internationally, for a worldwide gross of $257,349,549 by mid-March 2007.<ref>[http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=daily&id=borat.htm Boxofficemojo page on Borat's earnings]</ref>
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==Book==
==Book==
In 2007, a book from Baron Cohen was released, titled "Touristic Guidings to Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan/Touristic Guidings to Minor Nation of U.S. and A.", with humor about both countries in a similar vein to the movie.
In 2007, a book from Baron Cohen was released, titled "Touristic Guidings to Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan/Touristic Guidings to Minor Nation of U.S. and A.", with humor about both countries in a similar vein to the movie.
ijf;vjdigbp'fogpfkelkgj'ptr| accessdate = 2006-12-22

==Fate==
Sacha Baron Cohen has stated that the character of Borat, alongside his [[Ali G]] character, will be retired.<ref name="shed">[http://movies.yahoo.com/mv/news/va/20071221/119828847600.html Yahoo Movies: Sacha Baron Cohen to shed Borat persona for good] Yahoo, 21 December 2007</ref> Borat's last appearances were at ''Night of Too Many Stars: An Overbooked Event for Autism Education 2006'' television special and an online public service announcement ahead of the 2008 United States elections.<ref>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBCpt4D0SuU</ref>

==Criticism and controversy==
<!-- Commented out because image was deleted: [[Image:What borat believe.jpg|thumb|right|Borat sings a song about "children" at the 2005 MTV Europe Music Awards.]] -->
{{See also|Da Ali G Show#Controversy}}

===Criticized as unfair smear against Kazakhstan===
There have been arguments that the film's portrayal of the people of [[Kazakhstan]] is unfair and unjustified.

In August 2004, the [[Chief Rabbi]] of [[Kazakhstan]], addressing an international religious conference in [[Brussels]], stated that in 10 years in the country he had never faced [[anti-Semitism]]. He praised the Government of Kazakhstan for its treatment of the Jewish community.

On 19 October 2006, the [[BBC]] reported that Kazakhstan's Deputy Foreign Minister, Rakhat Aliyev, had invited Cohen to visit Kazakhstan to see how inaccurate his portrayals were. In an interview, Aliyev asserted that:

<blockquote>His trip could yield a lot of discoveries—that women not only travel inside buses but also drive their own cars, that we make [[Kazakh wine|wine]] from grapes, that Jews can freely attend [[synagogue]]s and so on.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/6066040.stm | work=BBC News | title=Kazakh invite for Borat creator | date=2006-10-19 | accessdate=2010-04-26}}</ref></blockquote>

===Denigration of Roma===
Borat's movie has been accused of promoting [[antiziganism]]. The scenes supposedly filmed in Borat's Kazakhstani village were actually filmed in an impoverished [[Romani people|Roma]] village of [[Moroeni|Glod]] in [[Romania]]. ''[[USA Today]]'' reports that [[poverty]]-stricken villagers were offered between $3.30 and $5.50 to bring animals into their houses and perform other acts some critics called humiliating.<ref>{{cite news
| title = Now Romanians say 'Borat' misled them
| url = http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/2006-11-14-romanians-borat_x.htm
| work = USA Today
| publisher = Gannett Co, Inc.
| date = 2006-11-15
| accessdate = 2006-12-22
}}</ref> The studio contends that
participants were paid double the rate recommended by the Romanian film office for extras.<ref name=LATVillagersSue>{{cite news
| first = Bojan
| last = Pancevski
| title = Villagers to sue 'Borat'
| url = http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-et-borat20nov20,0,1256926.story?coll=la-home-headlines
| work = Los Angeles Times
| publisher = Los Angeles Times
| date = 2006-11-20
| accessdate = 2006-12-22
}}</ref> The villagers (none of whom knew English) were told that they were being filmed for a documentary on village life and Cohen was a famous documentary host called Nicolae Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej, which aroused suspicions among the villagers because the name sounded like a [[portmanteau]] of the names of the Romanian Communist leaders [[Nicolae Ceauşescu]] and [[Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej]].<ref>[http://www.sbpost.ie/post/pages/p/story.aspx-qqqt=IRELAND-qqqm=news-qqqid=19386-qqqx=1.asp "Irish-American law firm to defend makers of Borat"] {{Dead link|date=June 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref>

Two villagers of Glod hired [[Reparation (legal)|reparation]] attorney [[Ed Fagan]] to sue the makers of the film for $30 million for [[human rights]] abuses. Fagan intended to submit lawsuits in [[New York]] and [[Florida]] state courts, as well as in [[Frankfurt, Germany]]. Fagan said that he hoped to "teach [[Hollywood]] a very expensive lesson." The lawsuit was thrown out by U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska in a hearing in early December 2006 on the ground that the charges were too vague to stand up in court. Fagan plans to refile.<ref>[http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=entertainment&id=4825647 "NYC Judge Questions Viability Of Villagers' 'Borat' Lawsuit"]</ref>

===Denigration of Jews===
The Borat character has been accused of [[anti-Semitism]] and [[anti-Zionism]], but Baron Cohen, himself an [[Orthodox Jew]], has explained that the segments are a "dramatic demonstration of how racism feeds on dumb conformity, as much as rabid [[bigotry]]."<ref>{{cite web
| url = http://movies.yahoo.com/mv/news/va/20060908/115774501000.html
| title = "Borat" satire turns to farce at Toronto festival
| accessdate = 2006-12-22
| date = 2006-09-08
| date = 2006-09-08
| work = Reuters Movie News
| work = Reuters Movie News
Line 82: Line 16:
| accessdate = 2006-12-22
| accessdate = 2006-12-22
| last = Strauss
| last = Strauss
| first = Neil
| date = 2006-11-14
| work = Rolling Stone
| publisher = Rolling Stone
}}</ref> Cohen, the grandson of a [[The Holocaust|Holocaust]] survivor, says he wishes in particular to expose the role of indifference:

<blockquote>When I was in university, there was this major historian of the [[Third Reich]], [[Ian Kershaw]], who said, 'The path to [[Auschwitz]] was paved with indifference.' I know it's not very funny being a comedian talking about the Holocaust, but it's an interesting idea that not everyone in [[Germany]] had to be a raving anti-Semite. They just had to be apathetic.<ref name="finally_speaks/page/2"/></blockquote> (The actual line from Kershaw’s 1983 book ''Popular Opinion and Political Dissent in the Third Reich'' was that "the road to Auschwitz was built by hate, but paved with indifference"<ref>Evans, Richard ''In Hitler's Shadow'', New York, NY: Pantheon, 1989 page 71</ref><ref>Marrus, Michael ''The Holocaust in History'', Toronto: KeyPorter, 2000 page 91.</ref>)

Regarding the enthusiastic response to his song "[[In My Country There Is Problem]]" (detailed below), he says, "Did it reveal that they were anti-Semitic? Perhaps. But maybe it just revealed that they were indifferent to anti-Semitism."

However, the [[Anti-Defamation League]], a U.S.-based group that “...combat[s] anti-Semitism and bigotry of all kinds”, complained to [[HBO]] after Borat performed a [[country western]] song titled "In My Country There Is Problem". It called on people to "throw the Jew down the well", warning that 'you must be careful of his teeth' and that "you must grab him by his money", and was welcomed with applause and participation from some members of an audience in [[Tucson, Arizona]]. The full chorus goes: "Throw the Jew down the well/So my country can be free/You must grab him by his horns/Then we have a big party."<ref>[http://www.adl.org/media_watch/tv/20040809-hbo.htm Letter to Sacha Baron Cohen ("Ali G")<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref>[http://www.adl.org/PresRele/Mise_00/4898_00.htm Statement On The Comedy Of Sacha Baron Cohen, A.K.A. "Borat"<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

In another scene, Borat visits the Serengeti Range ranch in [[Texas]], where the owner of the ranch confides that he believes the Holocaust was a necessity for [[Germany]]. He further implies that he would have no problem running a ranch where people can hunt, in Borat's words, "deer... then Jew."

An interview with [[James Broadwater]], an [[evangelical Christian]] and [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] candidate for the [[Congress of the United States|United States' Congress]] from [[Mississippi]], caused Broadwater to receive some hate [[email]]s after an episode of ''Da Ali G Show'' aired in which Broadwater stated that all non-Christians (including Jews) will go to [[Hell]]. He was told that the interview would be played in foreign countries to teach others about the American [[political system]]. Broadwater later posted a letter on his website denouncing ''Da Ali G Show,'' explaining that his statement referred to a theological belief that anyone that "accepts [[Jesus Christ]] as Lord and Saviour will spend eternity in [[Heaven]], while everyone who rejects Him will spend eternity in Hell." Broadwater did not apologise for his comments. Instead, he insisted that "the [[liberalism]], anti-God media needs to be brought under the strict control of the [[Federal Communications Commission|FCC]], and that as soon as possible."<ref>[http://www.webgeordie.co.uk/borat/broadwater.htm The Unofficial Borat Homepage | Behind the Scenes: James Broadwater<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

In the film, Borat continues his anti-Semitic stance. When he mentions his decision to avoid flying while in America, Borat says that his colleague "insists we not fly in case the [[9/11 conspiracy theories#Jewish_and_Israeli_involvement|Jews repeat]] their attack of [[September 11 attacks|9/11]]". Later, he finds himself in a bed and breakfast run by a kindly old Jewish couple. He tries to 'escape', and throws money at two cockroaches that have crawled into his room, apparently fearing that the Jewish owners have [[Shapeshifting|shapeshifted]] into the cockroaches. He was amazed that they had managed to look human and states that one "can hardly see their horns". Borat is completely oblivious to his hosts' religious beliefs when he first meets them, despite the immediate evidence: the man wears a [[kippah]] and the woman openly displays her paintings of Jewish people all over the house. Borat does not understand until the woman explicitly tells him "I'm Jewish."

Cohen later joked, upon receiving a British comedy award, that Borat was a guest of honour at the [[International Conference to Review the Global Vision of the Holocaust]] in [[Tehran]]. {{Citation needed|date=December 2009}}

The movie has enjoyed particular success in [[Israel]] because Israeli filmgoers understand what Borat is really saying when he is supposedly spouting Kazakh: throughout the film, Borat speaks fluent [[Hebrew]].<ref>{{cite news| url=http://film.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1975928,00.html | work=The Guardian | location=London | title=Secret of Borat's fluent Kazakh - it's Hebrew | date=2006-12-20 | accessdate=2010-04-26}}</ref>
The movie has enjoyed similar success in [[Armenia]] as well because Armenian filmgoers understand what Azamat Bagatov (Kenneth Davitian), Borat's producer and second character in the movie, is actually saying when he is supposed to spout in Kazakh: through the film, Azamat speaks fluent [[Armenian language|Armenian]].

===Iraq War sarcasm===
In January 2005, after convincing the authorities that he was shooting a [[documentary film|documentary]], Cohen managed to infuriate a crowd at a [[rodeo]] in [[Salem, Virginia]]. Even though the crowd first cheered at the beginning of his statements of support for the [[Iraq war]]<ref>[http://www.jahozafat.com/php/sounds/?id=bst&media=MP3S&type=Movies&movie=Borat&quote=canisayfirst.txt&file=canisayfirst.mp3 Jahozafat.com - Borat: canisayfirst.mp3<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>:
<blockquote>
"My name a Borat. I come from Kazakhstan. Can I say first, we support your [[War on Terror|War of Terror]]! May we show our support to our boys in Iraq! May U.S. and A. kill every single terrorist! May George Bush drink the blood of every single man, woman and child of Iraq! May you destroy their country so that for the next thousand years not even a single lizard will survive in their desert!"
</blockquote>

He then went on to sing an off-key rendition of [[The Star-Spangled Banner]] with the lyrics replaced by those of a fictitious "Kazakh national anthem", beginning with "Kazakhstan is the greatest country in the world/All other countries are run by little girls..."

"If he had been out there a minute longer, I think somebody would have shot him," said one witness. "People were booing him, [[Finger (gesture)|flipping him off]]." For his own safety, Cohen was escorted from the venue. (Much of the event appears in the movie.<ref>[http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/16655.html "Rodeo in Salem gets unexpected song rendition"], ''The Roanoke Times'', 9 January 2005.</ref> A credible news report about the incident, aired on a local television station, is included in the DVD extras).

===Conflicts with Kazakhstan's government===
Baron Cohen has also been accused of creating a derogatory image of [[Kazakhstan]].<ref>{{cite news
| first = Liam Skivington
| last = Pamela Anderson
| title = Is YA MOM racist?
| url = http://radar.smh.com.au/archives/2006/10/is_borat_racist.html
| work = Fairfax Digital
| publisher = The Sydney Morning Herald
| date = 2006-10-12
| accessdate = 2006-12-22
}}</ref>

In November 2005, following Borat's hosting of the [[MTV Europe Music Awards]] in [[Lisbon]], [[Kazakhstan]]'s [[Foreign Ministry]] voiced its concerns about the character. Spokesman Yerzhan Ashykbayev told a news conference: "We view Mr Cohen's behaviour at the MTV Europe Music Awards as utterly unacceptable, being a concoction of bad taste and ill manners which is completely incompatible with the ethics and civilised behaviour of Kazakhstan's people", concluding "We reserve the right to any [[Law|legal action]] to prevent new pranks of the kind."<ref>[http://www.eonline.com/News/Items/0,1,17770,00.html?fdnews "Kazakhstan on Borat: Not Nice"], Josh Grossberg, E! Online, 14 November 2005.</ref>
In November 2005, following Borat's hosting of the [[MTV Europe Music Awards]] in [[Lisbon]], [[Kazakhstan]]'s [[Foreign Ministry]] voiced its concerns about the character. Spokesman Yerzhan Ashykbayev told a news conference: "We view Mr Cohen's behaviour at the MTV Europe Music Awards as utterly unacceptable, being a concoction of bad taste and ill manners which is completely incompatible with the ethics and civilised behaviour of Kazakhstan's people", concluding "We reserve the right to any [[Law|legal action]] to prevent new pranks of the kind."<ref>[http://www.eonline.com/News/Items/0,1,17770,00.html?fdnews "Kazakhstan on Borat: Not Nice"], Josh Grossberg, E! Online, 14 November 2005.</ref>


Baron Cohen has since posted a video on the "Official Borat Homesite" where Borat responds to Ashykbayev in character. In the video, Borat states, in part:
Baron Cohen has since posted a video on the "Official Borat jofidjgoig| issue =

<blockquote>In response to Mr. Ashykbayev's comments, I'd like to state I have no connection with Mr. Cohen and fully support my government's decision to sue this Jew. Since the 2003 Tuleyakiv reforms, Kazakhstan is as civilized as any other country in the world. Women can now travel on ''inside'' of bus, [[homosexual]]s no longer have to wear blue hats, and [[age of consent]] has been raised to eight years old. Please, [[captain of industry]]; I invite you to come to Kazakhstan where we have incredible [[natural resource]]s, hardworking labour, and some of the cleanest prostitutes in whole of [[Central Asia]]. Goodbye! Dzienkuje!<ref>[http://www.borat.tv/response.htm Welcome to Foxmovies.com<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref></blockquote>

[[Reuters]] quoted an unnamed Western diplomat as saying "They (the [[Government of Kazakhstan]]) are damned if they do [respond] and damned if they don't," he said. "It's sort of unfortunate that he hit upon Kazakhstan." Another unnamed source inside Kazakhstan's Washington embassy called Borat a "one-man diplomatic [[wrecking ball]]."<ref>[http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=entertainmentNews&storyID=2005-11-25T135436Z_01_RID541373_RTRUKOC_0_US-KAZAKHSTAN-BORAT.xml&archived=False], Reuters, November 11, 2005. [Link broken]</ref><ref>[http://www.hollywoodjesus.com/movieDetail.cfm/i/8E7DE054-E9AB-C83F-D73051552DBAFBDA/ia/D4DC9887-D00D-9B3D-0E950E7839E35F9E Hollywood Jesus]</ref>

The next week, the government hired two Western [[public relations]] firms to counter Borat's claims, and ran a four-page advertisement in ''[[The New York Times]]''. The ad carried testimonials about the nation's democracy, [[education]] system and the power and influence enjoyed by women. On a previous occasion, Borat responded to such official complaints by issuing his own "press release", which consisted of randomly arranged [[Cyrillic]] characters. He would again respond when promoting his movie in front of the Kazakh Embassy in Washington, roundly denouncing the advertisements as "[[Uzbeks|Uzbek]] propaganda".<ref>[http://www.collegehumor.com/video:1710743/ "Borat denounces Uzbek propaganda"] College Humor</ref>

On the 13 December 2005, the right to use the [[domain name]] www.borat.kz was suspended, and the site attached to it was closed down.<ref>[http://www.eonline.com/News/Items/0,1,17962,00.html?rssceleb "Kazakhstan Strips Borat of Site"], Sarah Hall, E! Online, 13 December 2005. A different version of this article was formerly available on [http://today.reuters.com/news/newsarticle.aspx?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyid=2005-12-13T175428Z_01_FLE349782_RTRUKOC_0_US-KAZAKHSTAN-BORAT.xml Reuters].</ref> The domain-issuing body said that they took this action since false names were given for the site's administrators, and also because the site www.borat.kz was hosted outside Kazakhstan. However, the stated underlying cause of the action was in order to censor the content of the site: "We've done this so he can't badmouth Kazakhstan under the .kz domain name," Nurlan Isin, President of the Association of Kazakh IT Companies, told Reuters. "He can go and do whatever he wants at other domains."<ref name = "row">{{cite journal
| first =
| last =
| authorlink =
| coauthors =
| date =2006-09-12
| title =John Ya Mom
| journal = Daily Mail
| volume =
| issue =
| pages =
| id =
| url = http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=404852&in_page_id=1770
| format ={{Dead link|date=May 2008}}
}}</ref>

[[Reporters Without Borders]] petitioned the [[ICANN]] [[ombudsman]] to intervene and reverse this decision.<ref>[http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=15919&var_recherche=borat "Reporters Without Borders raps censorship of UK comedian's "Borat" website"] Reporters Without Borders online [[News release|press release]], issued 14 December 2005.</ref> Meanwhile, the "Official Borat Homesite" was moved to the [[.tv]] domain, where it remains. {{As of|2008|11|8}}, the former domain name was still suspended. The 2006 annual human rights report released by the [[US Department of State|US State Department]] cited the loss of the .kz website as evidence of the Kazakhstani government's efforts to curb free speech.<ref>[http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070307/film_nm/rights_usa_borat_dc] {{Dead link|date=June 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref>

Borat has, however, recently been defended by [[Dariga Nazarbayeva]], a politician and daughter of Kazakhstan's President [[Nursultan Nazarbayev]]. She stated on a national [[news programme]] ''Karavan'' that Cohen's website "damaged our image much less than its closure, which was covered by all global [[News agency|news agencies]]," and "We should not be afraid of humour and we shouldn't try to control everything, I think."<ref name = "afraid">{{cite journal
| first =
| last =
| authorlink =
| coauthors =
| date =2006-04-21
| title =
| journal =CBC
| volume =
| issue =
| pages =
| pages =
| id =
| id =
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| format ={{Dead link|date=October 2008}} &ndash; <sup>[http://scholar.google.co.uk/scholar?hl=en&lr=&q=intitle%3A&as_publication=CBC&as_ylo=2006&as_yhi=2006&btnG=Search Scholar search]</sup>
| format ={{Dead link|date=October 2008}} &ndash; <sup>[http://scholar.google.co.uk/scholar?hl=en&lr=&q=intitle%3A&as_publication=CBC&as_ylo=2006&as_yhi=2006&btnG=Search Scholar search]</sup>
}}</ref>
}}</ref>
since 1999 - contains interviews with Dan Mazer and Sacha Baron Cohen

== Diplomatic relationship (CIS and USA) ==
===White House "visit"===
On the 28 September 2006, Cohen appeared in character as Borat at the [[White House]] gates to give a [[press conference]] to "Supreme Warlord Premier George Walter Bush" to a screening of his forthcoming film, along with "[[O.J. Simpson]]", "[[Mel Gibson|Melvin Gibsons]]" and other "American dignitaries", after which they would join him for drinks at [[Hooters]]. [[United States Secret Service|Secret Service]] Uniformed Division Officers would not admit him to the grounds. The apparent [[publicity stunt]] was likely timed to coincide with an official [[state visit]] by Kazakhstani President [[Nursultan Nazarbayev]] the following day.<ref>{{YouTube | id = 0GAQDsitDlM | title = <BROKEN LINK!!> BORAT SAGDIYEV - White House Press Conference}}</ref>

===Complaint by Roma in Germany===
On 18 October 2006, [[European Centre for Antiziganism Research]],<ref>[http://www.ezaf.org/en/ezaf/1.html] {{Wayback |url=http://www.ezaf.org/en/ezaf/1.html |date=20060823092503 |bot=H3llBot}}</ref> which pleads against discrimination of Roma, filed a complaint<ref>[http://www.ezaf.org/Borat.pdf PDF file, in German] {{Dead link|date=June 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref> with prosecutors based on Borat's comments about [[Romani people|"Gypsies"]] in his film. The complaint accuses him of defamation and inciting violence against the [[ethnic group]].<ref>[http://www.smh.com.au/news/film/now-gypsies-want-borat-banned/2006/10/18/1160850984396.html Now Gypsies want Borat banned], [[The Sydney Morning Herald|Sydney Morning Herald]], 18 October 2006.</ref>

===Avian Flu "Gift"===
At a [[news conference]] for the press just hours before the live broadcast of the [[2005 MTV Europe Music Awards]], he shocked local and international journalists in [[Lisbon, Portugal]], by bringing a bag of birds from [[Romania]] (the first European country to detect [[avian influenza]]) as a gift, then proceeded to say he was sorry that they had all died.

===Dharma Arthur===
[[WAPT (TV)|WAPT]] ([[Jackson, Mississippi]]) [[TV news]] producer Dharma Arthur states in ''[[Newsweek]]'' she lost her job as a result of her booking Borat on a local morning news program. At the time of the appearance, she was unaware of Cohen's act. During an interview with [[News presenter|news anchor]] Brad McMullan, Borat made sexual and [[scatology|scatological]] references, kissed McMullan and later disrupted a live [[weather report]].<ref>{{cite news
| first = Roger
| last = Friedman
| title = Dharma and... Borat? A 'Victim' Complains
| url = http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,226960,00.html
| work = FOX News
| publisher = FOX News Network, LLC.
| date = 2006-11-02
| accessdate = 2006-12-22
}}</ref> She said: "Because of him, my boss lost faith in my abilities and second-guessed everything I did... I spiralled into depression, and... was released from my contract... It took me three months to find another job, and now I'm thousands of dollars in debt and struggling to keep my house out of foreclosure... How upsetting that a man who leaves so much harm in his path is lauded as a comedic genius."

The broadcast, including the initial interview, the disrupted weather report, and several behind-the-scenes shots made by Borat's own [[film crew]], is seen in the ''Borat'' movie.

===Litigation===
* The state prosecutor in [[Hamburg]], [[Germany]], filed a complaint against Cohen, accusing him of slander, inciting violence against the [[Sinti]] and [[Romani people|Roma]] Gypsy groups, and violating Germany's [[Civil rights|anti-discrimination law]].<ref>[http://www.breitbart.com/news/2006/11/01/061101190142.n43n2q02.html Rights group files complaint against 'Borat' in Germany<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
*Two of the [[University of South Carolina]] [[Fraternities and sororities|fraternity brothers]] who appeared in the film, Justin Seay and Christopher Rotunda, sued the producers, claiming [[slander and libel|defamation]].<ref name = "BBC-sueBorat">{{Cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/6136944.stm |title=US students sue over Borat film|date=2006-11-10|work= BBC News|accessdate=2007-03-17}}</ref><ref name = "esuit"/><ref name = "smokinggun-Bamboozled">{{cite web|url=http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/1113061borat1.html | work=[[The Smoking Gun]]| title= Bamboozled By Borat?|date=2006-11-13|accessdate=2007-03-17}}</ref> On 11 December 2006, an L.A. Judge denied the pair an [[injunction]] to remove them from the film.<ref>[http://today.reuters.com/news/articleinvesting.aspx?view=CN&storyID=2006-12-11T220915Z_01_N11213404_RTRIDST_0_BORAT-LAWSUIT.XML&rpc=66&type=qcna "L.A. judge sides with 'Borat' against frat boys" ] 11 December 2006, Reuters [Link broken]</ref> The suit by Seay and Rotunda was dismissed in February 2007.<ref name="esuit"/> The students also had sought an injunction to prevent the DVD release of the film, which was denied.<ref name = "BBC-sueBorat"/><ref name="esuit">Finn, Natalie. [http://www.eonline.com/news/article/index.jsp?uuid=b3444828-4b64-4348-9ab8-548da596bd68 Judge Nixes Borat Suit]. E! Online 2007-02-21. Retrieved on 2007-03-07.</ref><ref name = "smokinggun-Bamboozled"/><ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/6171305.stm Borat 'victims' fail to block DVD]. ''BBC News'', 2006-12-12. Retrieved on 2007-03-07.</ref>

*Cindy Streit, the owner of Etiquette Training Service in [[Birmingham, Alabama]], had claimed mistreatment and fraud after Borat attended a dinner party and subjected her and the other guests to "ridicule and humiliation". Ms. Streit had hired attorney [[Gloria Allred]], who was demanding an investigation by the California [[attorney general]]. Allred says that her client agreed to be filmed as part of a documentary for [[Belarus]] television, and for those purposes only. She is asking the attorney general to consider all appropriate relief, including a percentage of the profits from the film. [[20th Century Fox]] denied the claims and stated that there was nothing in writing about only being shown in Belarus; the studio also asserted that the release form clearly stated the footage could be distributed worldwide.<ref>[http://www.courttv.com/people/2006/1116/borat_ctv.html Court TV]</ref> The case was dismissed on Sep. 3, 2008 [http://howappealing.law.com/JudgePreskaBoratOpinion.pdf]
* Michael Psenicska, the owner of the driving school in [[Perry Hall, Maryland]], has filed a lawsuit seeking $100,000 in compensatory damages and unspecified punitive damages. His lawsuit states that Twentieth Century Fox and Sacha Cohen fraudulently convinced him to approve his appearance in the movie by telling him that it would be for a documentary of immigrants integrating into American life. The case was dismissed on Sep. 3, 2008 [http://howappealing.law.com/JudgePreskaBoratOpinion.pdf]
* Kathie Martin, the owner of Etiquette Training School of Birmingham, has filed a lawsuit on similar grounds, which has been dismissed on Sep. 3, 2008 along with Streit and Psenicska actions [http://howappealing.law.com/JudgePreskaBoratOpinion.pdf]
* Jeffrey Lemerond, who was shown running and yelling "go away" as Borat attempted to hug strangers on a New York street, filed a legal case claiming his image was used in the film illegally, and that he suffered "public ridicule, degradation and humiliation" as a result. The case was dismissed.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7327892.stm | work=BBC News | title=Judge dismisses Borat legal case | date=2008-04-03 | accessdate=2010-04-26}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Mahir Çağrı]]

==Notes and references==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
{{wikiquote}}
{{Commons category}}
* [http://www.boratonline.co.uk boratonline.co.uk] Semi-official Borat site since 1999 - contains interviews with Dan Mazer and Sacha Baron Cohen
* {{imdb title|id=0443453|title=Borat}}
* {{imdb title|id=0443453|title=Borat}}
* [http://movies.go.com/feature?featureid=856522 Video interview with Borat] on Movies.com
* [http://movies.go.com/feature?featureid=856522 Video interview with Borat] on Movies.com

Revision as of 20:41, 9 June 2010

Borat Sagdiyev
Борат Сагдиев

In 2007, Cohen won a Golden Globe for "Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical Or Comedy". With a production budget of $18,000,000 the film has grossed $128,501,044 in the United States of America and another $128,848,505 internationally, for a worldwide gross of $257,349,549 by mid-March 2007.[1]

Book

In 2007, a book from Baron Cohen was released, titled "Touristic Guidings to Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan/Touristic Guidings to Minor Nation of U.S. and A.", with humor about both countries in a similar vein to the movie.

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</ref> "Borat essentially works a tool. By himself pretending to be anti-Semitic, he lets people lower their guard and expose their own prejudice," Cohen explained to Rolling Stone.Cite error: A <ref> tag is missing the closing </ref> (see the help page).

Baron Cohen has since posted a video on the "Official Borat jofidjgoig| issue = | pages = | id = | url = http://www.cbc.ca/story/arts/national/2006/04/21/borat-kazakhstan-defence.html?ref=rss | format =[dead link] – Scholar search }}</ref> since 1999 - contains interviews with Dan Mazer and Sacha Baron Cohen

Articles

  1. ^ Boxofficemojo page on Borat's earnings
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