1-MINUTE RESUME FOR SACHA BARON COHEN
Posturing as the black Jamaican gangsta TV interviewer Ali G, who satirized and mocked his unaware interviewees with impossibly ignorant and politically incorrect questions, was comedian Sacha Baron Cohen's claim to fame on British TV in the late 1990s; audiences ate it up even as the controversial character sparked debate and public protests. American viewers were finally hip to Cohen when HBO signed him for the series
Da Ali G Show in 2000. Besides Ali G, he's known for his other two characters: Bruno, an Austrian fashionista and Borat, a Khazakstani TV reporter. Borat hit the big screen in 2006's
Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan. Cohen also delivered an impressive performance as a French racecar driver in 2006's
Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby opposite Will Ferrell.
5 Things:
1. He studied history at Cambridge and was considering to get his PhD.
2. He's Jewish and once spent a year on kibbutz.
3. He adopted the character of Borat in his audition for The 11 O'clock Show, which is where he launched his Ali G persona.
4. His sister is severely mentally and physically disabled; his brother is a Cambridge psychologist who created a stir with a controversial theory about autism.
5. Ralph Nader's people were so upset that Ali G got him to rap during an interview, an aide reportedly said it could be grounds for a lawsuit.
Quote:
"Part of the idea of Borat is get people to feel relaxed enough that they fully open up. And they say things that they never would on normal TV. So if they are anti-Semitic or racist or sexist, they'll say [so]."
The New York Times, July 23, 2005
Family:
Fiancée: Isla Fisher, actress; engaged 2004
Awards:
2007: Academy Award nomination: Best Adapted Screenplay,
Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan; Golden Globe: Best Actor in a Motion Picture (Comedy),
Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
Recent Films:
Madagascar: The Crate Escape - (2008) - Voice
Sweeney Todd - (2007) - Actor
Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan - (2006) - Actor, Screenplay
Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby - (2006) - Actor
Da Ali G Show - The Complete Second Season - (2004) - Actor
View all films
Sites for Sacha Baron Cohen
http://www.boratonline.co.uk/
http://westlord.boxist.com/ali-g/