The Sun - November 13, 2006
Borat spanked by angry Yank
By EMILY SMITH US Editor
BORAT star Sacha Baron Cohen was beaten up by a passer-by after he tried to play a prank as his alter ego. He approached the man and said: “I like your clothings. Are nice! Please may I buying? I want have sex with it.”
But the bystander didn’t see the joke. He took one look at Cohen and punched him in the face.
The funnyman — known for his Borat catchphrase “Jagshemash!” — yelled for help but was slugged again and again.
He was rescued by actor pal Hugh Laurie who had been on his way to a New York bar with Cohen.
Laurie rushed to help and pushed the man away as Cohen struggled to his feet. A pal of Cohen said: “Sacha couldn’t resist playing the fool as Borat, but picked on the wrong person.
“I guess this guy thought he was being attacked by someone unstable and lashed out. Sacha is very lucky he didn’t get a much worse beating.”
The incident took place after Laurie and Cohen appeared on the US TV show Saturday Night Live. The Brit comics were on their way to a late dinner when Laurie suggested they visit a bar in Manhattan.
Laurie, 47, told friends he feared Cohen was going to get badly beaten up. Luckily, 35-year-old Cohen did not receive any lasting scars.
Studio chiefs have warned Cohen to avoid pretending to be the spoof Kazakhstan TV reporter on the streets. Since the film was launched he has only appeared in character while promoting the movie on American television shows.
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A FOREIGN exchange firm is thanking Borat for sparking a surge in travel to Kazakhstan. Travelex has ordered £500,000 worth of its Tenge currency to cope with the boom and a spokesman said: “It’s down to Borat.”