Coordinates	28°36′36″N77°13′48″N
colour	#F0E78C
name	Borat SagdiyevБорат Сагдиев
series	Borat
first	''F2F''
last	''Night of Too Many Stars: An Overbooked Event for Autism Education''
creator	Sacha Baron Cohen
portrayer	Sacha Baron Cohen
born	February 17, 1972
occupation	Journalist/broadcaster, singer, actor
parents	Asimbala Sagdiyev (mother)Boltok (father/grandfather/uncle/brother)
siblings	Natalya Sagdiyev (sister)Bilo Sagdiyev (brother)Lilya Utbarkan (half sister)
spouse	Oksana (deceased)LudmillaLuenell (2006–present)
children	Hooeylewis (son)Biram (son)Bilak (son)
Grandchildren	seventeen unnamed
residence	Kazakhstan }}

Borat Sagdiyev (Kazakh/Russian: Борат Сагдиев) (born February 17, 1972) is a fictional Kazakhstani journalist and the main protagonist of the film ''Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan'', created and portrayed by Sacha Baron Cohen.

Borat's humour derives from his mocking of society through outrageous sociocultural viewpoints, his violation of social taboos and his use of vulgar language and behaviour. ''Entertainment Weekly'' put it on its end-of-the-decade, "best-of" list, saying, "Sacha Baron Cohen's fake Kazakhstani journalist gave us some of the most incisive cultural commentary ever filmed. That, and a wrestling match between butt-naked men. Something for everyone."

Sacha Baron Cohen's character Borat, alongside his Ali G and Brüno characters, has been retired.

Origins

The character was first developed for short skits on ''F2F'' on Granada Television that Cohen presented in 1996–1997. He was given another run by 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. 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

Borat claims to have been born on February 17, 1972 in the fictional village of Kuzcek, Kazakh SSR to Asimbala Sagdiyev and Boltok the Rapist (who is also stated to be his paternal grandfather, uncle and former father-in-law until the demise of Oksana); he says his mother gave birth to him when she was nine years old. He has a thirteen-year-old son named Hooeylewis (believed by some to be a reference to Huey Lewis), twelve-year-old twin boys named Biram and Bilak, and seventeen grandchildren. He has an older sister, Natalya (whom he has claimed at different times to be "the number four best prostitute in Kazakhstan") and a younger brother, Bilo, whom he describes as being "a retard" with hair all over his face and entire body, and has a very small head but very strong arms. He also has 204 teeth, 201 in mouth and 3 in his nose. It is revealed that Bilo had "a demon" in his head, so Borat's family drilled a hole in his head, and a tooth of a red-haired woman was placed in his brain. This procedure supposedly worked, until "the demon take his revenge, and he make him (Bilo) a retard." Borat also claims that Bilo had "sexy time" with Lilya Utbarkan (the daughter of Borat's mother and his neighbor Nursultan Tuyakbay) which produced a very strange baby that performs in the State Circus.

It is unknown how many times Borat has been married, after first having been betrothed to his half-sister's Plough while in his teens. One of his wives (Ludmilla) is said to have been shot by a hunter when he mistook her for a bear as she plowed the fields. His former wife, Oksana, is reported in the ''Borat'' film to have been attacked, "violated", and "broken" by a bear while taking his brother Bilo for a walk in the forest. Borat is not saddened by the tragedy; he thanks the man who brings him this "good news" by giving him a high five and celebrates his new-found freedom by pursuing Pamela Anderson and eventually reunites with and marries Luenell, an American prostitute he met while filming his documentary.

According to various in-character interviews with Sacha Baron Cohen, Borat attended Astana University, where he studied English, journalism, and plague research. He created five new plagues which "killed over 5 million goats in Uzbekistan." Prior to his plague research, Borat worked as an ice maker, gypsy catcher, animal puller (one who produces semen from animals) and computer maintenance engineer (specifically, removing dead birds which had nested in the vents in the computers casing). He now works as a professional journalist and announcer on Kazakh television. This job "helps Borat and other Kazakhs express themselves in ways they otherwise would not have been able to do."

Although nominally pagan for most of his life, sometimes remarking that his people "follow the hawk", in the film he attends a Pentecostal church service and later converts his village neighbours to Christianity. Borat greatly admires the political views of Joseph Stalin, and claims that both he and Stalin are strong men with powerful "khram" (genitals). He is strongly against women's rights and was quite aghast upon learning of women's suffrage (stating that government scientist Dr. Yarmulka says a woman has a brain the size of squirrel). He frequently comments that it (woman's suffrage) is like "a monkey driving a car" or "a monkey with a gun". In his spare time, he enjoys playing ping pong, sunbathing while clad in a lime green "mankini", disco dancing, spitting, sitting on comfortable chairs, and taking pictures of women while they "make toilet". He also enjoys hunting Jews in his homeland. He is particularly fond of "mouth-party" and "hand-party" Borat also states that he "very much like Korky Butchek" who is a fictitious musician and sex which he likes to call "sexy time".

However, Kathleen Tracy states in her book ''Sacha Baron Cohen, the Unauthorized Biography: from Cambridge to Kazakhstan'' that the character Borat was never intended to be entirely consistent, meaning that incongruities in Borat's personal details can be noticed if they are examined closely.

Cohen retired Borat due to widespread recognition, and used Brüno as his 'proper' alter-ego, but this character has also been retired.

''Da Ali G Show''

In each episode of ''Da Ali G Show'', Borat is shown doing satirical interviews with often unwitting subjects in the United Kingdom and the United States. The segments were shot in low-quality video to maintain the satirical feel of poor quality television (similar to Chanel 9 segments on ''The Fast Show'').

The Borat segments on ''Da Ali G Show'' use the rock-rendition Russian folk tune "Korobeiniki" as the theme song.

Guide to Britain

Shown as part of a six-part Ali G show originally on Channel 4 (UK) in March 2000.

Five Borat sketches were shown, in the form of "Guides" to "Etiquette", Hunting, Cambridge, Edinburgh and Henley. The "Guides" to "English Gentlemen", "Politics" and "Sport" were also filmed at this time but released at a later date as part of ''Ali G'' DVDs. The Cambridge sketch is the only major Borat material from this series not to have made it onto the compilation DVDs.

Guide to USA 1

Shown as part of a six part ''Ali G Show'' originally on HBO (USA) in February 2003. This series was screened and released in the UK as ''Ali G In The USAiii''.

Six Borat sketches were shown in the form of "Guides" to "Dating", "Etiquette", "Acting", "Men", "Baseballs" and "The (Deep) South". A "Guide to Animals" was filmed but released at a later date as part of an ''Ali G'' DVD. (Alyssa Greenfill was his co-star.)

Guide to USA 2

Shown as part of a six-part ''Ali G Show'' originally on HBO (USA) in July 2004. (Channel 4 was the UK channel where Ali G and Borat originally appeared, and the series for America was a joint HBO/Channel 4 co-production). This series was re-edited for the UK to remove all the Ali G material, becoming two prime-time ''Borat's Television Programme'' specials for Channel 4. These specials also embodied the Bruno segments from the series and Borat's "Guide To Hunting", not screened in the US version. The uncut second series as it appeared on HBO was later given a UK courtesy transmission on digital channel E4.

Six Borat sketches were shown in the form of "Guides" to "Wine Tasting", "Politics", "Country Music", "Hobbies", "Buying a House" and "Jobs" (careers), with "Hunting" airing in the UK only.

Films

''Ali G Indahouse''

Borat had a small role in Cohen's film ''Ali G Indahouse'' as a Kazakhstani diplomat, in which he greets Cohen's other character Ali G with a hug and kiss, but is rebuffed and accused of being a homosexual "batty boy", thus calls Ali G a "cocksucker". In the end, Borat performs a hip-hop duet with superstar Max Allard.

''Borat'' film

Subtitled ''Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan'', the film ''Borat'' is mockumentary comedy. Most of those appearing in the film are not paid performers, but real people whom Borat met on his journey. The film was distributed by 20th Century Fox, and directed by Larry Charles. It premiered at the 2006 Toronto International Film Festival, and was released across Europe on 2 November 2006 and North America on 3 November 2006.

The film follows Borat in his travels across the United States, as he commits cultural solecisms and exposes a few American ones. Over the course of the film, Borat falls in love with Pamela Anderson after watching a rerun of ''Baywatch,'' and vows to make her his wife.

The film opened at #1 in the U.S., taking in $26.4 million on a limited release of 837 screens during its first weekend, beating ''Fahrenheit 9/11'' as the biggest opening weekend for a film released in fewer than 1,000 cinemas. Cohen celebrated the release of the film with a host of promotional 'in-character' interviews. The film expanded its release on the second weekend to 2,566 screens, where it took in an additional $29 million.

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.

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.

Fate

Sacha Baron Cohen has stated that the character of Borat, alongside his Ali G character, will be retired. 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.

Criticism and 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:

His trip could yield a lot of discoveries—that women not only travel inside buses but also drive their own cars, that we make wine from grapes, that Jews can freely attend synagogues and so on.

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 Roma village of 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. The studio contends that participants were paid double the rate recommended by the Romanian film office for extras. 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.

Two villagers of Glod hired 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.

Denigration of Jews

The Borat character has been accused of anti-Semitism 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." "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''. Cohen, the grandson of a Holocaust survivor, says he wishes in particular to expose the role of indifference:

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.)

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 his country western-style song "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." Regarding the enthusiastic response to "In My Country There Is Problem", he says, "Did it reveal that they were anti-Semitic? Perhaps. But maybe it just revealed that they were indifferent to anti-Semitism."

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 candidate for the United States' Congress from Mississippi, caused Broadwater to receive some hate emails 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 FCC, and that as soon as possible."

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 Jews repeat their attack of 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 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.

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. 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.

Iraq War sarcasm

In January 2005, after convincing the authorities that he was shooting a 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:

"My name a Borat. I come from Kazakhstan. Can I say first, we support your 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!"

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, flipping him off." For his own safety, Cohen was escorted from the venue. (Much of the event appears in the movie. 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.

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 legal action to prevent new pranks of the kind."

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:

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, homosexuals 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 resources, hardworking labour, and some of the cleanest prostitutes in whole of Central Asia. Goodbye! Dzienkuje!

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."

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 "Uzbek propaganda".

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. 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."

Reporters Without Borders petitioned the ICANN ombudsman to intervene and reverse this decision. Meanwhile, the "Official Borat Homesite" was moved to the .tv domain, where it remains. , the former domain name was still suspended. The 2006 annual human rights report released by the US State Department cited the loss of the .kz website as evidence of the Kazakhstani government's efforts to curb free speech.

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 agencies," and "We should not be afraid of humour and we shouldn't try to control everything, I think."

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 invite "Supreme Warlord Premier George Walter Bush" to a screening of his forthcoming film, along with "O.J. Simpson", "Melvin Gibsons" and other "American dignitaries", after which they would join him for drinks at Hooters. 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.

Complaint by Roma in Germany

On 18 October 2006, European Centre for Antiziganism Research, which pleads against discrimination of Roma, filed a complaint with prosecutors based on Borat's comments about "Gypsies" in his film. The complaint accuses him of defamation and inciting violence against the ethnic group.

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 (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 anchor Brad McMullan, Borat made sexual and scatological references, kissed McMullan and later disrupted a live weather report. 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 Roma Gypsy groups, and violating Germany's anti-discrimination law. Two of the University of South Carolina fraternity brothers who appeared in the film, Justin Seay and Christopher Rotunda, sued the producers, claiming defamation. On 11 December 2006, an L.A. Judge denied the pair an injunction to remove them from the film. The suit by Seay and Rotunda was dismissed in February 2007. The students also had sought an injunction to prevent the DVD release of the film, which was denied.

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. The case was dismissed on Sep. 3, 2008. 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. Kathie Martin, the owner of Etiquette Training School of Birmingham, filed a lawsuit on similar grounds, which was dismissed on Sep. 3, 2008 along with the Streit and Psenicska actions. 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.

See also

Mahir Çağrı

Notes and references

External links

boratonline.co.uk Semi-official Borat site since 1999 - contains interviews with Dan Mazer and Sacha Baron Cohen

Articles

NPR Fresh Air Interview of Sacha Baron Cohen

Interview with Dan Mazer about Borat, Producer of Da Ali G Show on 23 April 2003 on boratonline.co.uk

"Did Ali G Go Too Far?" on 13 August 2004 in ''The Jewish Week''

"The Borat Doctrine" posted 13 September 2004 in ''The New Yorker''

"'Ali G' Comedian Riles Rodeo Crowd" on 14 January 2005 on ''CBS News''

"No Joke" by Kenneth Neil Cukier on 28 December 2005 in ''Foreign Affairs'', on what the removal of the Borat site from the .kz domain portends for the administration of the global domain name system

Borat on Gotuit Video

And Now for the World According to Borat and Sacha Baron Cohen

"Borat in Paris" on 9 October 2006

"Offensive and unfair, Borat's antics leave a nasty aftertaste" by Kazakhstan Ambassador Erlan Idrissov on 4 October 2006 in ''The Guardian''

"Behind the Schemes", Newsweek, 16 October 2006 (profiling several people who became unwitting Borat punch lines)

"Borat vs. Kazakhstan", brandchannel, 30 October 2006 (discusses Borat's affect on Westerners' perception of Kazakhstan)

"Mahir to Borat: I Sue You!", Wired, November 2006 (Q&A; with Borat look-a-like Mahir Cagri) "Can Borat be Sued by (Mahir Cagri)?", Electronic News Network, November 2006 (evidence Borat was developed before Mahir Cagri's internet fame)

"We survived Stalin and we can certainly overcome Borat's slurs" by Kazakhstan Ambassador Erlan Idrissov on 4 November 2006 in ''The Times''

"Borat 2 - A satirical explanation of the Borat movie."

Category:Alter egos Category:Antisemitism Category:Comedy characters Category:Fictional characters introduced in 1996 Category:Fictional immigrants to the United States Category:Fictional interviewers Category:Fictional offspring of incestuous relationships Category:Fictional reporters Category:Fictional television personalities

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Coordinates	28°36′36″N77°13′48″N
name	Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
director	Larry Charles
producer
screenplay
story
starring
music	Erran Baron Cohen
cinematography
editing
distributor	20th Century Fox
released
runtime	84 minutes
country
language
budget	$18 million
gross	$261,572,744
italic title	force }}

''Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan'', often referred to simply as ''Borat'', is a 2006 mockumentary comedy film directed by Larry Charles and distributed by 20th Century Fox. It was written, produced by, and stars the English comedian Sacha Baron Cohen in the title role of a fictitious Kazakh journalist traveling through the United States, recording real-life interactions with Americans. It is the second film built around one of Baron Cohen's characters from ''Da Ali G Show'', following ''Ali G Indahouse'', which also featured a cameo by Borat.

Despite a limited initial release in the United States, the satire was a critical and commercial success. Baron Cohen won the 2007 Golden Globe Award for Best Actor: Musical or Comedy, as Borat, while the film was nominated for Best Motion Picture in the same category. ''Borat'' was also nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay at the 79th Academy Awards. The film is often featured in critical assessments of greatest comedy films ever made.

Controversy surrounded the film even two years before its release. It was denounced for having a protagonist who is sexist, homophobic, and antisemitic, and, after the film's release, some cast members spoke against, and even sued, its creators. All Arab countries, except for Lebanon, banned it, and the Russian government discouraged cinemas there from showing it. It was released on DVD March 5, 2007 (a day later in Region 1 countries).

Plot

Borat Sagdiyev, a popular Kazakh television personality, leaves his homeland of Kazakhstan for the "Greatest Country in the World," the "US and A" to make a documentary film at the behest of the fictitious Kazakh Ministry of Information. He leaves behind his mother, his wife, Oksana, and other colorful characters of the town including "the town rapist", "the town mechanic and abortionist", and brings along his producer Azamat Bagatov (Ken Davitian), and his pet chicken, Buh-Kaw. Much of the movie features unscripted vignettes of Borat interviewing and interacting with Americans, who believe he is a foreigner with little or no understanding of American customs.

While in New York, Borat sees an episode of ''Baywatch'' on television and immediately falls in love with Pamela Anderson. While interviewing a panel of feminists (and discreetly laughing at their beliefs), he learns her name and that she lives in California. Borat is informed by telegram that his wife has been violated and killed by a bear. Delighted by the news, he secretly resolves to go to California to make Anderson his new wife. Borat and Azamat were supposed to remain in New York, but Borat justifies the trip to California by telling his skeptical producer that "Pearl Harbor is there. So is Texas." Because Azamat is afraid of a repetition of the September 11, 2001 attacks, which he believes were the work of the Jews, he will not fly there, so Borat takes driving lessons and buys a dilapidated ice-cream truck for the journey.

During the cross-country trip, Borat acquires a Baywatch television show booklet at a yard sale, and continues gathering footage for his documentary. He meets gay pride parade participants, politicians (including Alan Keyes and Bob Barr) and African American youths playing cee-lo. Borat is also interviewed on live television and disrupts the weather report. Visiting a rodeo, Borat, after first exciting the crowd with jingoistic, pro-U.S. remarks, sings a fictional Kazakhstani national anthem to the tune of "The Star-Spangled Banner", which receives a strong negative reaction. Staying at a bed-and-breakfast, Borat and his producer are stunned to learn their hosts are Jewish. Fearful of death ("or worse") at the hands of their hosts, the two "escape" after throwing money toward cockroaches, believing they are their Jewish hosts self-transformed. While Azamat advises a return to New York (where, he believes, "at least there are no Jews"), Borat attempts to buy a handgun to defend himself against Jews. When told he cannot buy a gun because he is not an American citizen, Borat purchases a bear (which he names after his late wife) for protection.

Borat seeks advice from an etiquette coach whom he goes on to show nude photos of his allegedly teenaged son. These photos actually show gay porn star Stonie, who was chosen because producers were seeking "someone who would look 13 or 14 but was actually of legal age and would do frontal nudity". At the suggestion of the coach, Borat attends a private dinner at an eating club in the South, at which he (unintentionally) insults or otherwise offends the other guests, and gets kicked out after he lets Luenell, an African-American prostitute, into the house and shows her to the table. Borat befriends Luenell, and she invites him into a relationship with her, but he kindly tells her that he is in love with someone else. Borat then visits an antique shop with a display of Confederate heritage items, breaking glass and crockery.

The journey is interrupted when Borat, just out of the bathtub, exits the bathroom of his hotel room and sees Azamat masturbating over a picture of Pamela Anderson in the ''Baywatch'' book. Borat becomes enraged and reveals his real motive for traveling to California. Azamat becomes livid at Borat's deception, and the situation escalates into a fully nude brawl, with what have been described as homoerotic undertones, which spills out into the hallway, a crowded elevator, and ultimately into a packed convention ballroom. The two are finally separated by security guards.

As a result, Azamat abandons Borat, taking his passport, all of their money, and their bear, whose head is later seen inside Azamat's motel refrigerator. Borat begins to hitchhike to California, but is soon picked up by drunken fraternity brothers from the University of South Carolina. On learning the reason for his trip, they show him the ''Pam and Tommy'' sex video, revealing that she is not the virgin he thought she was. After leaving the three students, Borat becomes despondent, burning the ''Baywatch'' booklet and, by mistake, his return ticket to Kazakhstan. He regains his faith after attending a United Pentecostal camp meeting, at which Republican U.S. Representative Chip Pickering and Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice James W. Smith, Jr. are present. Borat learns to forgive Azamat and Pamela. He accompanies church members on a bus to Los Angeles and disembarks to find Azamat dressed as Oliver Hardy (though Borat thinks that he is dressed as Adolf Hitler). The two reconcile and Azamat tells Borat where to find Pamela Anderson.

Borat finally comes face-to-face with Anderson at a book signing at a Virgin Megastore. After showing Anderson his "traditional marriage sack," Borat pursues her throughout the store in an attempt to abduct her until he is tackled and handcuffed by security guards. Afterwards, Borat marries Luenell, and returns to Kazakhstan with her. The final scene shows the changes that Borat's observations in America have brought to his village, including the apparent conversion of the people to Christianity (the Kazakh version of which includes crucifixion of Jews) and the introduction of computer-based technology, such as iPods, laptop computers and a high-definition, LCD television.

The film plays out with a recapitulation of a mock 'Kazakhstan' national anthem glorifying the country's potassium resources and its prostitutes as being the "cleanest in the region". The visual melange of Soviet-era photos are mixed with the real flag of Kazakhstan and, incongruously, the final frames show the portrait of Ilham Aliyev, real life president of Azerbaijan, a country that had not been otherwise referenced in the movie.

Cast

Sacha Baron Cohen as Borat Sagdiyev: Borat is a fictional journalist from Kazakhstan, distinguished by exaggeratedly strong misogyny, anti-Semitism and antiziganism, which is depicted as apparently the norm in his homeland. Borat was originally created as a character for ''Da Ali G Show'' and appeared in every episode of the show.

Ken Davitian as Azamat Bagatov: The producer of Borat's documentary. Azamat was a new character created for the film. Davitian, as "The fat guy from Borat", was included at number two on a list of "The 100 Unsexiest Men" by the ''Boston Phoenix''.

Luenell Campbell as Luenell the prostitute: Luenell is first seen when Borat calls her to come to the Southern dinner, the climax of his effective destruction of the event.

Pamela Anderson as Herself: Pamela Anderson plays a central role in the film as the reason for the journalist's cross country journey. She also appears in person at the end of the film, in a botched abduction attempt by Borat for cultural "marriage".

Deleted scenes

The DVD included several deleted scenes from the film, including Borat being questioned by police at a traffic stop, visiting an animal shelter to get a bear to protect him from Jews, getting a massage at a hotel, and visiting an American doctor. There is also a montage of scenes cut from the film, including Borat taking a job at Krystal and taking part in a Civil War reenactment. The deleted-scenes menu also includes an intentionally tedious supermarket sequence with an unusually patient supermarket owner (Borat repeatedly asks about each product in the cheese section of the store and the owner responds the same way: "That's cheese"), an actual local TV news report about Borat's rodeo singing, and a final "happy ending" scene about Borat appearing in a Kazakh show entitled "''Sexydrownwatch''", a ''Baywatch'' clone that also starred Azamat, Luenell, and Alexandra Paul.

A scene in which Borat was apparently imprisoned was also filmed but was removed under the threat of legal action by prison officials when they learned the "documentary" was a satire.

One of the film's writers, Dan Mazer, confirmed, in an interview, that there was a scene filmed but cut, in which Borat took part in the shooting of actual pornography. Mazer claimed the scene was deleted so as not to compete with the naked hotel-fight but hinted it might be included in future DVD releases.

Production

Except for Borat, Azamat, Luenell, and Pamela Anderson, none of the characters are portrayed by actors. Most scenes in the film were unscripted, although the end credits do credit a "Naked Fight Coordinator." In most cases the film's participants were given no warning on what they would be taking part in except for being asked to sign release forms agreeing not to take legal action against the film's producers. Filming was already underway in January 2005, when Baron Cohen caused a near riot in what would ultimately be the rodeo scene in the final cut of the film.

An interview with Baron Cohen by ''Rolling Stone'' indicated that over 400 hours of footage had been shot for the film.

The "Kazakhstan" depicted in the film has little or no relationship with the actual country and the producers explicitly deny attempting to "convey the actual beliefs, practices or behavior of anyone associated with Kazakhstan" in the "all persons fictitious" disclaimer. The scenes showing Borat's home village were filmed in the village of Glod, Romania. The name of Borat's neighbor, Nursultan Tuyakbay, is a cross between the names of Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev and opposition politician Zharmakhan Tuyakbay.

No Kazakh language is heard in the film. Borat's neighbors in Kazakhstan were portrayed by Roma people, who were unaware of the film's subject. The Cyrillic alphabet used in the film is the Russian form, not the Kazakh one, although most of the words written in it (especially the geographical names) are either misspelled, or make no sense at all. The lettering on the aircraft in the beginning of the film is merely the result of English characters on a reversed image, while promotional materials spell "BORДT" with a Cyrillic letter for D substituted for the "A" in Faux Cyrillic style typically used to give a "Russian" appearance. Sacha Baron Cohen speaks Hebrew in the film, while Ken Davitian actually speaks Armenian. They also use several common phrases from Slavic languages: Borat's trademark expressions ''"jagshemash"'' (jak się masz) and ''"chenquieh"'' (dziękuję) echo the Polish (or other related languages) for ''"How are you?"'' and ''"thank you"''. While presenting his house, Borat says ''"tishe"'' to his house-cow; "tiše/тише" is Russian (similar words exist in other Slavic languages) for "quiet(er)" or "be quiet".

The film is produced by Baron Cohen's production company, Four By Two Productions. "Four By Two" is Cockney Rhyming Slang for "Jew".

Screenings and release

Previews

''Borat'' was previewed at the 2006 Comic-Con International in San Diego, California, on July 21, 2006. Its first screening to a paying audience was during the 2006 Traverse City Film Festival, where it won the Excellence in Filmmaking Award.

The film's official debut was in Toronto on September 7, 2006, at the Ryerson University Theatre during the Toronto International Film Festival. Sacha Baron Cohen arrived in character as Borat in a cart pulled by women dressed as peasants. Twenty minutes into the showing, however, the projector broke. Baron Cohen performed an impromptu act to keep the audience amused, but ultimately all attempts to fix the equipment failed. The film was successfully screened the following night, with Dustin Hoffman in attendance.

In Israel, a proposed poster depicting Borat in a sling bikini was rejected by the film's advertising firm in favor of one showing him in his usual suit.

Scaled-back U.S. release

In late October 2006, less than two weeks before the film's debut, 20th Century Fox scaled back its American release from about 2,000 to 800 cinemas after marketing-survey data showed unexpectedly poor levels of audience awareness, surprising industry professionals, who could not recall such a move being made so close to a film's release. Despite this move, the film opened at number one in the box office, maintaining first place for two weeks straight. The film earned more in the second week ($28,269,900) than in the first ($26,455,463), due to an expansion onto 2,566 screens.

Theatrical release

''Borat'' had its public release on November 1, 2006, in Belgium, and by November 3, 2006, it had opened in the United States and Canada as well as 14 European countries. Upon its release it was a massive hit, taking in US$26.4 million in its opening weekend, the highest ever in the United States and Canada for a film released in fewer than 1,000 cinemas until ''Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert'' in 2008. However, its opening day (approximately $9.2 million) was larger than that of the ''Hannah Montana'' concert (approximately $8.6 million), leaving ''Borat'' with the record of the highest opening day gross for a film released in fewer than 1,000 cinemas. On its second weekend, ''Borat'' surpassed its opening with a total of US$29 million.

Reception

Critical

''Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan'' was well received by critics. In an article about the changing face of comedy, ''The Atlantic Monthly'' said that it "may be the funniest film in a decade". Michael Medved gave it 3.5 out of 4 stars, calling it "...simultaneously hilarious and cringe-inducing, full of ingenious bits that you'll want to describe to your friends and then laugh all over again when you do." Rotten Tomatoes classified it as one of the best-reviewed films of 2006, with an aggregate "Certified fresh" rating of 91%.

One negative review came from American critic Joe Queenan, who went as far as to call Baron Cohen an "odious twit." In an article for ''Slate'', writer Christopher Hitchens offered a counter-argument to suggestions of anti-Americanism in the film. Hitchens suggested instead that the film demonstrated amazing tolerance by the film's unknowing subjects, especially citing the reactions of the guests in the Southern dinner scene to Borat's behavior.

Commercial

American audiences embraced the film, which played to sold-out crowds at many showings on its opening despite having been shown on only 837 screens. Borat debuted at number one on its opening weekend with a total gross of $26.4 million, beating its competitors ''Flushed Away'' and ''The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause''. The film's opening weekend's theater average was an estimated $31,511, topping ''Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest'' yet behind ''Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith'' and ''Spider-Man''. It retained the top spot in its second weekend after expanding to 2,566 theaters, extending the box office total to $67.8 million.

In the United Kingdom, ''Borat'' opened at number one, with an opening weekend gross of £6,242,344 ($11,935,986), the 43rd best opening week earnings in the UK as of March 2007. Since its release, ''Borat'' has grossed over $260 million worldwide.

Awards and nominations

''Borat'' received a nomination at the 79th Academy Awards for Best Adapted Screenplay, although the award ultimately went to ''The Departed''. It was also nominated for a Golden Globe Award under the category of Best Motion Picture: Musical or Comedy, but lost to ''Dreamgirls''. The Broadcast Film Critics Association named it the Best Comedy Movie of 2006, and the Writers Guild of America, west nominated it for their award for Best Adapted Screenplay.

Baron Cohen won a Golden Globe for Best Actor: Musical or Comedy. He received equivalent awards from the San Francisco Film Critics Circle, the Utah Film Critics Association, the Toronto Film Critics Association and the Online Film Critics Society. The Los Angeles Film Critics Association tied Baron Cohen with Forest Whitaker in ''The Last King of Scotland'' for their title of Best Actor, while the former was nominated for the title by the London Film Critics Circle.

It has been featured in multiple top ten lists of films in 2006, including lists by the American Film Institute, ''Time Magazine'', ''Rolling Stone'', David Ansen for ''Newsweek'' and Lou Lumenick for The ''New York Post''.

On June 3, 2007, Sacha Baron Cohen won the MTV Movie Award for best Comedic Performance for ''Borat''.

Retirement of Borat character

A third film by Baron Cohen was released in 2009 — based on another of his characters: Brüno, a gay Austrian fashion reporter. Universal Studios is reported to have produced the film with a budget of $42 million.

Rupert Murdoch announced in early February 2007 that Baron Cohen had signed on to do another Borat film with Fox. This was contradicted, however, by an interview with Baron Cohen himself stating that Borat was to be discontinued, as he was now too well known to avoid detection as he did in the film and on ''Da Ali G Show''. A spokesman for Fox later stated that it was too early to begin planning such a film, although they were open to the idea.

Baron Cohen subsequently announced that he was "killing off" the characters of Borat and Ali G because they were now so famous he could no longer trick people.

Controversies

Participants' response

Before being considered for appearance in the film, all potential participants were required to sign long release forms agreeing not to take legal action for any defamation of character or fraud carried out during the film's production. The usual disclaimer included at the end of the film's credits, stating that all characters in the film were fictitious, also noted that "No real person depicted or appearing in the film has sponsored or otherwise endorsed its contents."

After the film's release, Dharma Arthur, a news producer for WAPT-TV in Jackson, Mississippi, wrote a letter to ''Newsweek'' saying that Borat's appearance on the station had led to her losing her job: "Because of him, my boss lost faith in my abilities and second-guessed everything I did thereafter … How upsetting that a man who leaves so much harm in his path is lauded as a comedic genius." Although Arthur has said she was fired from the show, she told the AP that she left the station. She claims to have checked a public relations website that Borat's producers gave her before booking him.

In news coverage that aired in January 2005 of the filming of the rodeo scene, Bobby Rowe, producer of the Salem, Virginia, rodeo depicted in the movie, provided background on how he had become the victim of a hoax. He said that "months" prior to the appearance, he had been approached by someone from "One America, a California-based film company that was reportedly doing a documentary on a Russian immigrant"; he agreed to permit the "immigrant" to sing the U.S. national anthem after listening to a tape. After the film's release, Rowe said "Some people come up and say, 'Hey, you made the big time'; I've made the big time, but not in the way I want it." Cindy Streit, Borat's etiquette consultant has subsequently hired high-profile attorney Gloria Allred, who is demanding the California Attorney General investigate fraud allegedly committed by Baron Cohen and the film's producers. The guest (Mike Jared) whom Borat had described as a "retard" after "misunderstanding" a statement that he was retired (spoken with a drawl), commented that "I have never been more hurt in my life. When I first found out that the footage was going to be used for a film released in North American cinemas I felt confused, embarrassed, and angry. For the rest of my life I will have to live with the fact that I am featured in a film that contains strong language, nudity, and sex. I am floored."

There are conflicting reports regarding the feelings of the participants in the scenes in which Borat and Azamat stay at a guest house owned by a Jewish couple. The British tabloid ''The Sun'' claims that a scene depicting cockroaches running around in their home has hurt Mariam and Joseph Behar's business in Newton, Massachusetts. The couple were quoted as saying, "This is very insulting. They never told us they were going to do this. It is really terrible." However, the ''Salon'' Arts & Entertainment site quotes the Behars as calling the film "outstanding," referring to Baron Cohen as "very lovely and very polite" and a "genius." The ''Boston Globe'' also interviewed the couple, saying they considered the film more anti-Muslim than anti-Semitic and had feared that Baron Cohen and his ensemble might be filming pornography in the house.

The feminists from Veteran Feminists of America (VFA) also felt that they had been duped, having "sensed something odd was going on" before and during the interview with Borat. ''The Guardian'' later reported at least one of the women felt that the film was worth going to see at the cinema.

The ''New York Post'' had reported in November 2006 that Pamela Anderson filed for divorce from her husband Kid Rock after he reacted unfavorably to the movie during a screening. ''The Post'''s article specifically claimed he had said of her role in the film, "You're nothing but a whore! You're a slut! How could you do that movie?" Anderson later confirmed in an interview on ''The Howard Stern Show'' that Rock was upset by her appearance in the film, but did not confirm this was the cause of the separation.

There has been some debate in United Pentecostal circles regarding the camp meeting's depiction in the film. United Pentecostal ministers are barred from attending mainstream movies at all, and the faithful are strongly admonished against it.

Legal action by participants

The villagers of Glod, Dâmboviţa County, Romania, have taken legal action against the producers of ''Borat'', complaining that they were lied to about the nature of the filming and they were portrayed as incestuous and ignorant. Some claimed they were paid only three lei (about US$1.28 in 2004) each, while others stated they were paid between $70 and $100 each, which did not cover their expenses. They are asking for $38 million in damages. One lawsuit was thrown out by US 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. The litigants said they planned to refile.

Two of the University of South Carolina fraternity brothers who appeared in the film, Justin Seay and Christopher Rotunda, sued the producers, claiming defamation. The suit by Seay and Rotunda was dismissed in February 2007. The students also had sought an injunction to prevent the DVD release of the film, which was denied.

Another lawsuit was filed by a South Carolina resident who claimed to have been accosted by Baron Cohen (as Borat) in the bathroom at a restaurant in downtown Columbia, with the actor allegedly making comments regarding the individual's genitals, without signing any legal waiver. The lawsuit also sought to have the footage excluded from any DVD releases and removed from Internet video sites.

The Macedonian Romani singer Esma Redžepova sued the film's producers, seeking €800,000 because the film used her song "Chaje Šukarije" without her permission. Afterwards, Redžepova won a €26,000 compensation, since it turned out that Cohen got permission from her production house to use the song, which she was not notified about.

A lawsuit was launched by Felix Cedeno, who wants $2.25 million from 20th Century Fox, claiming they invaded his privacy and needed permission to use his image. The 31-year-old was riding the subway home to the South Bronx when Sacha Baron Cohen let a live hen out of his suitcase, causing chaos in the subway car.

Baltimore resident Michael Psenicska sought more than $100,000 in damages from Baron Cohen, 20th Century Fox and other parties. Psenicska, a high school mathematics teacher who also owns a driving school, was reportedly paid $500 in cash to give Baron Cohen's bogus Kazakh journalist a driving lesson. In his action, filed in the US District Court in Manhattan, the driving instructor said he had been told the film was a "documentary about the integration of foreign people into the American way of life" and had he known the film's true nature, he said, he would have never participated. Psenicska said he was entitled to damages because the defendants used images of him to advertise the film. The case was dismissed on September 9, 2008.

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.

Baron Cohen reacted to these suits by noting, "Some of the letters I get are quite unusual, like the one where the lawyer informed me I'm about to be sued for $100,000 and at the end says, 'P.S. Loved the movie. Can you sign a poster for my son Jeremy?'"

Criticism by Kazakhstan

''Borat'' has had a history of controversy with the government of Kazakhstan. In 2005, following Borat's appearance at the MTV Movie Awards, the country's Foreign Ministry threatened to sue Sacha Baron Cohen, and Borat's "Kazakh-based" website, www.borat.kz, was taken down. A meeting between Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev and US President George W. Bush in September 2006 had Kazakhstan's post-Borat international image among the items on the agenda. Kazakhstan also launched a multi-million dollar "Heart of Eurasia" campaign to counter the Borat effect; Baron Cohen replied by denouncing the campaign at an in-character press conference in front of the White House as the propaganda of the "evil nitwits" of Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan is, throughout the film, referred to by Borat as his nation's leading problem—leaving aside the Jews.

The Central Asian distributor of 20th Century Fox, Gemini Films, complied with a Kazakh government request to not release the film.

The Kazakh tabloid ''Karavan'' declared ''Borat'' to be the best film of the year, having had a reviewer see the film at a screening in Vienna. The paper claimed that it was "...certainly not an anti-Kazakh, anti-Romanian or anti-Semitic" film but rather "cruelly anti-American ... amazingly funny and sad at the same time." Another favorable word came from Kazakh novelist Sapabek Asip-uly, who suggested Baron Cohen be nominated for the annual award bestowed by the Kazakh Club of Art Patrons. In a letter published by the newspaper ''Vremya'', Asip-uly wrote, "(Borat) has managed to spark an immense interest of the whole world in Kazakhstan—something our authorities could not do during the years of independence. If state officials completely lack a sense of humor, their country becomes a laughing stock." Amazon UK has also reported significant numbers of orders of ''Borat'' on DVD from Kazakhstan. The film is also watched regularly by the Kazakhstan national football team's players.

Accusations of racism

The European Center for Antiziganism Research, which works against negative attitudes toward Roma people, filed a complaint with German prosecutors on October 18, 2006, based on Borat's references to Gypsies in his film. The complaint accuses him of defamation and inciting violence against an ethnic group. As a consequence, 20th Century Fox declared that it would remove all parts referring to Roma people from trailers shown on German television as well as on the movie's website.

Before the release of the film, the Anti-Defamation League released a statement expressing concern over Borat's characteristic anti-Semitism. While Baron Cohen himself is Jewish and has stated that he uses Borat to expose the prejudices felt or tolerated by others, the organization remained concerned that some audiences might remain oblivious to this aspect of the film's humor while "some may even find it reinforcing their bigotry."

Censorship

The film was banned in the entire Arab world, except for Lebanon. Yousuf Abdul Hamid, a film censor for Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, called the film “vile, gross and extremely ridiculous.” The censor also noted he and his colleagues had walked out on their screening before it had ended, and that only half an hour of the movie would be left once all the offensive scenes were removed.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack for ''Borat'' was released on October 24, 2006, on iTunes Store, and October 31, 2006 in shops. The album included music from the film, five tracks entitled "Dialoguing excerpt from moviefilm", as well as the controversial anti-Semitic song "In My Country There Is Problem" from ''Da Ali G Show''.

The folk music included in the soundtrack has no connection to the authentic music of Kazakhstan. The album features songs mainly by Gypsy artists and includes music by Erran Baron Cohen, founding member of ZOHAR Sound System and brother of ''Borat'' star Sacha Baron Cohen, as well as songs sung by Sacha Baron Cohen himself in character as Borat.

DVD release

The Region 2 DVD was released March 5, 2007, with the Region 1 release the following day. Special features include deleted scenes, faux advertisements for the soundtrack album, and a complete Russian language translation audio track using a professional dubbing cast, along with the English, French, and Spanish language tracks common on Region 1 (US/Canada) DVDs. There is also a choice of Hebrew as well, but this is merely a joke. Choosing the Hebrew language option results in a warning screen reading "You have been trapped, Jew!" which warns the viewer not to change his shape and keep his claws where they can be seen, again playing on the anti-Semitism supposedly prevalent in Borat's version of Kazakhstan. It also includes footage of Borat's publicity tour for the film, with Baron Cohen in character as Borat on ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'', ''Late Night With Conan O'Brien'', the Toronto Film Festival, and ''Saturday Night Live''. Also, there is a section of a news story from Virginia, about Borat and the rodeo he visited with the Rodeo owner (Bobby Rowe) being interviewed

As a play on the copyright infringement common in the former Soviet Union, the packaging of the Region 1 (United States/Canada), 2 (Europe/Japan/South Africa/Middle East) and 4 (Latin America/Oceania) editions mimics a foreign bootleg DVD. The slipcover is in English but the case itself has all-Cyrillic text (a majority of which is in legitimate Russian, not faux Cyrillic) and is made to look poorly photocopied. The disc itself is made to look like a "Demorez" DVD-R (a parody of Memorex, with the similar slogan "Is life? No. Demorez.") with the word "BOЯAT" appearing to be crudely written in marker and the "R" written backwards. The UMD version is similar to the DVD, even being labelled a "UMD-R" (which do not exist). Even the Fox in-cover advertising is written in broken English that appears poorly printed, indicating that there are "More movie discs available from US&A;" and "Also legal to own in Kazakhstan".

There are further jokes within the DVD itself. The menus are styled as a worn, static-laden film on an erratically functioning projector, with more Cyrillic writing accompanied by translations in broken English. The DVD is described as a "prerecorded moviedisc for purpose domestic viewing of moviefilm" and the viewer is warned that "selling piratings of this moviedisc will result in punishment by crushing." The DVD's collection of trailers promises these films are "coming Kazakhstan in 2028."

The DVD has sold 3,971,007 copies, totalling $62,567,857 in sales.

See also

Molvanîa

Elbonia

Lower Slobbovia

References

External links

Borat official website (Archive)

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Coordinates	28°36′36″N77°13′48″N
name	Fred Rogers
birth name	Fred McFeely Rogers
birth date	March 20, 1928
birth place	Latrobe, Pennsylvania, U.S.
death date	February 27, 2003
death place	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
death cause	Stomach cancer
religion	Presbyterian Church(ordained in 1963)
other names	Mister RogersMr. Rogers
spouse	Sara Joanne Byrd (1952–2003)
occupation	Educator, minister, songwriter, television host
years active	1951–2002 }}

Fred McFeely Rogers (March 20, 1928 – February 27, 2003) was an American educator, Presbyterian minister, songwriter, and television host. Rogers was most famous for creating and hosting ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'' (1968–2001), that featured his gentle, soft-spoken personality and directness to his audiences.

Initially educated to be a minister, Rogers was displeased with the way television addressed children and made an effort to change this when he began to write for and perform on local Pittsburgh area shows dedicated to youth. The Public Broadcasting System developed his own nationally aired show in 1968 and over the course of three decades on television, he became an indelible American icon of children's entertainment and education, as well as a symbol of compassion, patience, and morality. He was also known for his advocacy of various public causes. He testified to the U.S. Supreme Court on time shifting; and he gave a now-famous speech before the U.S. Senate, advocating government funding for children's television.

Rogers was honored extensively for his life work in children's education. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States' highest civilian honor, a Peabody Award for his career, and was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame. Two resolutions recognizing his work were unanimously passed by U.S. Congress, one of his trademark sweaters was acquired and is on display at the Smithsonian Institution, and several buildings and works of art in Pennsylvania are dedicated to his memory.

Personal life

Fred McFeely Rogers was born in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, 40 miles (65 km) southeast of Pittsburgh, to James and Nancy Rogers; he had one sister, Elaine Rogers Crozier. Early in his life, he spent much of his free time with his maternal grandfather, Fred McFeely, who would later move to Florida, and had an interest in music. He would often sing along as his mother would play the piano and, at age five, began to play the piano as well.

Rogers graduated from Latrobe High School (1946). He studied at Dartmouth College (1946–48) in Hanover, New Hampshire, and transferred to Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida, where he received a Bachelor of Arts in Music Composition (1951).

At Rollins, Rogers met Sara Joanne Byrd, an Oakland, Florida, native; and they married on June 9, 1952. They had two sons, James (b. 1959) and John (b. 1961), and three grandsons, the third (Ian McFeely Rogers) born twelve days after Rogers' death. In 1963, Rogers graduated from Pittsburgh Theological Seminary and was ordained a minister in the Presbyterian Church. During the course of his career, he garnered forty honorary degrees. Rogers was red-green color blind, swam every morning, was a vegetarian, and neither smoked nor drank.

Rogers had an apartment in New York City and a summer home on Nantucket island in Massachusetts.

Television career

Early work

Fred Rogers had a life-changing moment when he first saw television in his parents' home. He entered seminary after college; but, after his first experience as a viewer, he wanted to explore the potential of the medium. In an interview with CNN in his later years, Rogers stated, "I went into television because I hated it so, and I thought there was some way of using this fabulous instrument to be of nurture to those who would watch and listen."

He thus applied for a job at NBC in New York City in 1951 and was hired because of his Music degree. Rogers spent three years working on the production staffs for such music-centered programming as ''NBC Opera Theater''. He also worked on Gabby Hayes' show for children. Ultimately, Rogers decided that commercial television's reliance on advertisement and merchandising undermined its ability to educate or enrich young audiences, so he quit NBC.

In 1954, he began working at WQED, a Pittsburgh public television station, as a puppeteer on a local children's show ''The Children's Corner''. For the next seven years, he worked with host Josie Carey in unscripted live TV, developing many of the puppets, characters, and music used in his later work, such as King Friday XIII, and Curious X the Owl.

Rogers began wearing his famous sneakers when he found them to be quieter than his work shoes as he moved about behind the set. He was also the voices of King Friday XIII and Queen Sara Saturday (named after his wife), rulers of the neighborhood, as well as X the Owl, Henrietta Pussycat, Daniel Striped Tiger, Lady Elaine Fairchild, and Larry Horse. The show won a Sylvania Award for best children's show, and was briefly broadcast nationally on NBC.

During these eight years, he would leave the WQED studios during his lunch breaks to study theology at the nearby Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. Rogers, however, was not interested in preaching; and, after his ordination, he was specifically charged to continue his work with Children's Television. He had also done work at the University of Pittsburgh's program in Child Development and Child Care.

In 1963, Rogers moved to Toronto, where he was contracted by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) to develop a 15-minute children's television program: ''Misterogers'', which would be his debut in front of the camera. The show was a hit with children but lasted for only three seasons. Many of his famous set pieces—Trolley, Eiffel Tower, the 'tree', and 'castle'—were created by CBC designers. While in Canada, Rogers brought his friend and understudy Ernie Coombs, who would go on to create ''Mr. Dressup'', a very successful and long-running children's show in Canada, and similar in many ways to ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood''. ''Mr. Dressup'' also used some of the songs that would be featured on Rogers' later program.

In 1966, Rogers acquired the rights to his program from the CBC and moved the show to WQED in Pittsburgh, where he had worked on ''The Children's Corner''. He developed the new show for the Eastern Educational Network. Stations that carried the program were limited but did include educational stations in Boston, Washington, D.C., and New York City.

After returning to Pittsburgh, Rogers attended and participated in activities at the Sixth Presbyterian church in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh, a More Light congregation which he attended until his death.

Distribution of ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'' began on February 19, 1968. The following year, the show moved to PBS (Public Broadcasting Service). In 1971, Rogers formed Family Communications, Inc. (FCI), and the company established offices in the WQED building in Pittsburgh. Initially, the company served solely as the production arm of ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'', but now develops and produces an array of children's programming and educational materials.

''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood''

''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'' began airing in 1968 and ran for 895 episodes; the last set of new episodes was taped in December 2000 and began airing in August 2001. At its peak, in 1985, 8% of U.S households tuned in to the show.

Each episode began the same way: Mister Rogers is seen coming home, singing his theme song "Won't You Be My Neighbor?", and changing into sneakers and a zippered cardigan sweater.

In a typical episode, Rogers might have an earnest conversation with his television audience, interact with live guests, take a field trip to such places as a bakery or a music store, or watch a short film.

Typical video subjects included demonstrations of how such inanimate objects as bulldozers and crayons work or are manufactured.

Each episode included a trip to Rogers' "Neighborhood of Make-Believe" featuring a trolley with its own chiming theme song, a castle, and the kingdom's citizens, including King Friday XIII. The subjects discussed in the Neighborhood of Make-Believe often allowed further development of themes discussed in Mister Rogers' "real" neighborhood.

Mister Rogers often fed his fish during episodes. They were originally named Fennel and Frieda.

Typically, each week's episode explored a major theme, such as going to school for the first time.

Originally, most episodes ended with a song entitled "Tomorrow", and Friday episodes looked forward to the week ahead with an adapted version of "It's Such a Good Feeling." In later seasons, all episodes ended with "Feeling."

Visually, the presentation of the show was very simple, and it did not feature the animation or fast pace of other children's shows, which Rogers thought of as "bombardment". Rogers also believed in not acting out a different persona on camera compared to how he acted off camera, stating that "One of the greatest gifts you can give anybody is the gift of your honest self. I also believe that kids can spot a phony a mile away." Rogers composed almost all of the music on the program. He wanted to teach children to love themselves and others, and he addressed common childhood fears with comforting songs and skits. For example, one of his famous songs explains how a child cannot be pulled down the bathtub drain because he or she will not fit. He even once took a trip to the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh to show children that a hospital is not a place to fear. During the Gulf War (1990–91), he assured his audience that all children in the neighborhood would be well cared for and asked parents to promise to take care of their own children. The message was aired again by PBS during the media storm that preceded the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

Other television work

In 1994, Rogers created another one-time special for PBS called ''Fred Rogers' Heroes'' which consisted of documentary portraits of four real-life people whose work helped make their communities better. Rogers, uncharacteristically dressed in a suit and tie, hosted in wraparound segments which did not use the "Neighborhood" set.

For a time Rogers produced specials for parents as a precursor to the subject of the week on the Neighborhood called "Mister Rogers Talks To Parents About ''[topic]''". Rogers didn't host those specials though as other people like Joan Lunden, who hosted the Conflict special, and other news announcers played MC duties in front of a gallery of parents while Rogers answered questions from them. These specials were made to prep the parents for any questions the children might ask after watching the episodes on that topic of the week.

The only time Rogers appeared on television as someone other than himself was in 1996, when he played a preacher on one episode of ''Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman.''

In the mid-1980s, the Burger King fast-food chain lampooned Rogers' image with an actor called "Mr. Rodney", imitating Rogers' television character. Rogers found the character's pitching fast food as confusing to children, and called a press conference in which he stated that he did not endorse the company's use of his character or likeness (Rogers did no commercial endorsements of any kind throughout his career, though he acted as a pitchman for several non-profit organizations dedicated to learning over the years). The chain publicly apologized for the ''faux pas'', and pulled the ads. By contrast, Fred Rogers found Eddie Murphy's parody of his show on ''Saturday Night Live'', "Mr. Robinson's Neighborhood," amusing and affectionate, which was also initially broadcast at a time of night when his own child audience was not likely to see it.

Emmys for programming

''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'' won four Emmy awards, and Rogers received one for lifetime achievement.

During the 1997 Daytime Emmys, the Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Rogers. The following is an excerpt from ''Esquire's'' coverage of the gala, written by Tom Junod:

Advocacy

PBS funding

In 1969, Rogers appeared before the United States Senate Subcommittee on Communications. His goal was to support funding for PBS and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, in response to significant proposed cuts. In about six minutes of testimony, Rogers spoke of the need for social and emotional education that public television provided. He passionately argued that alternative television programming like his ''Neighborhood'' helped encourage children to become happy and productive citizens, sometimes opposing less positive messages in media and in popular culture. He even recited the lyrics to one of his songs.

The chairman of the subcommittee, John O. Pastore, was not previously familiar with Rogers' work, and was sometimes described as impatient. However, he reported that the testimony had given him goosebumps, and declared, "I think it's wonderful. Looks like you just earned the $20 million." The subsequent congressional appropriation, for 1971, increased PBS funding from $9 million to $22 million.

VCR

During the controversy surrounding the introduction of the household VCR, Rogers was involved in supporting the manufacturers of VCRs in court. His 1979 testimony in the case ''Sony Corp. of America v. Universal City Studios, Inc.'' noted that he did not object to home recording of his television programs, for instance, by families in order to watch together at a later time. This testimony contrasted with the views of others in the television industry who objected to home recording or believed that devices to facilitate it should be taxed or regulated.

The Supreme Court considered the testimony of Rogers in its decision that held that the Betamax video recorder did not infringe copyright. The Court stated that his views were a notable piece of evidence "that many [television] producers are willing to allow private time-shifting to continue" and even quoted his testimony in a footnote:

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Death, awards, and memorials

Rogers was diagnosed with stomach cancer in December 2002, not long after his retirement. He underwent surgery on January 6, 2003, which was unsuccessful. A week earlier, he served as grand marshal of the Tournament of Roses Parade, with Art Linkletter and Bill Cosby.

Rogers died on February 27, 2003 at his home with his wife by his side, less than a month before he would have turned 75. His death was such a significant event in Pittsburgh that the front page of the ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'' published the next day devoted its coverage to him. The Reverend William P. Barker presided over a public memorial in Pittsburgh. More than 2,700 people attended the memorial at Heinz Hall, including former ''Good Morning America'' host David Hartman, Teresa Heinz Kerry, philanthropist Elsie Hillman, PBS President Pat Mitchell, ''Arthur'' creator Marc Brown, and ''The Very Hungry Caterpillar'' author-illustrator Eric Carle. Speakers remembered Rogers' love of children, devotion to his religion, enthusiasm for music, and quirks. Teresa Heinz Kerry said of Rogers, "He never condescended, just invited us into his conversation. He spoke to us as the people we were, not as the people others wished we were." Rogers is interred at Unity Cemetery in Latrobe.

On New Years Day of 2004, Michael Keaton hosted the PBS TV special "Mr. Rogers: America's Favorite Neighbor". It was released on DVD September 28 that year. Keaton was a former stagehand on the show before he quit to become an actor. To mark what would have been his 80th birthday, Rogers' production company sponsored several events to memorialize him, including "Won't You Wear a Sweater Day", during which fans and neighbors were asked to wear their favorite sweaters in celebration.

The television industry honored Rogers with a George Foster Peabody Award "in recognition of 25 years of beautiful days in the neighborhood" in 1987, the same year he was initiated as an honorary member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity, the national fraternity for men of music. Rogers was a National Patron of Delta Omicron, an international professional music fraternity. He was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in 1999. One of Rogers' iconic sweaters was acquired by the Smithsonian Institution, which displays it as a "Treasure of American History". In 2002 Rogers received the PNC Commonwealth Award in Mass Communications.

He was furthermore awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2002, for his contributions to children's education, justified by President George W. Bush, who said, "Fred Rogers has proven that television can soothe the soul and nurture the spirit and teach the very young". A year later, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed Resolution 16 to commemorate the life of Fred Rogers. It read, in part, "Through his spirituality and placid nature, Mr. Rogers was able to reach out to our nation's children and encourage each of them to understand the important role they play in their communities and as part of their families. More importantly, he did not shy away from dealing with difficult issues of death and divorce but rather encouraged children to express their emotions in a healthy, constructive manner, often providing a simple answer to life's hardships."

Following Rogers' death, the U.S. House of Representatives in 2003 unanimously passed Resolution 111 honoring Rogers for "his legendary service to the improvement of the lives of children, his steadfast commitment to demonstrating the power of compassion, and his dedication to spreading kindness through example."

The same year the U.S. Presbyterian Church approved an overture "to observe a memorial time for the Reverend Fred M. Rogers" at its General Assembly. The rationale for the recognition of Rogers reads, "The Reverend Fred Rogers, a member of the Presbytery of Pittsburgh, as host of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood since 1968, had a profound effect on the lives of millions of people across the country through his ministry to children and families. Mister Rogers promoted and supported Christian values in the public media with his demonstration of unconditional love. His ability to communicate with children and to help them understand and deal with difficult questions in their lives will be greatly missed."

Several buildings, monuments, and works of art are dedicated to Rogers' memory, including a mural sponsored by the Pittsburgh-based Sprout Fund in 2006, "Interpretations of Oakland," by John Laidacker that featured Mr. Rogers. Saint Vincent College in (Latrobe, Pennsylvania) completed construction of The Fred M. Rogers Center for Early Learning and Children's Media in 2008. The Fred Rogers Memorial Statue on the North Shore near Heinz Field in Pittsburgh was created by Robert Berks and dedicated in 2009.

The asteroid 26858 Misterrogers is named after Rogers. This naming, by the International Astronomical Union, was announced on May 2, 2003 by the director of the Henry Buhl Jr. Planetarium & Observatory at the Carnegie Science Center in Pittsburgh. The science center worked with Rogers' Family Communications, Inc. to produce a planetarium show for preschoolers called "The Sky Above Mister Rogers' Neighborhood", which plays at planetariums across the United States.

False rumors

A false rumor claims that Fred Rogers was once a U.S. Marine sniper in the Vietnam War. The rumor appeared on the Internet in 1994 and re-emerged several times over the next ten years, most notably after his death in 2003. However, Rogers never served in any branch of the military. Beginning in 1963, Rogers developed the ''Misterogers'' program for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. In 1966, he moved back to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the U.S. where he produced ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'' through the height of U.S. military involvement in Vietnam. Related claims that Rogers had a number of military tattoos are also entirely false.

See also

Colcom Foundation

Notes

References

External links

PBS Kids: Official Site

The Fred M. Rogers Center

Fred Rogers' Company

Category:1928 births Category:2003 deaths Category:People from Latrobe, Pennsylvania Category:American Presbyterian clergy Category:Actors from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Category:American puppeteers Category:American television actors Category:American television personalities Category:American vegetarians Category:Christian vegetarians Category:Cancer deaths in Pennsylvania Category:Christianity in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Category:Dartmouth College alumni Category:Daytime Emmy Award winners Category:Deaths from stomach cancer Category:PBS people Category:Peabody Award winners Category:Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients Category:Rollins College alumni

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