If you've witnessed any episode of HBO's "Da Ali G Show," the 2006 film "Borat" or its upcoming spiritual follow-up "Brüno," then it'd be very easy to come to the conclusion that Sacha Baron Cohen is a comedic chameleon without equal. You would be wrong though. There also a not-so-little somebody that may or may not have gone by the name of Andy Kaufman.
Like Cohen, Kaufman's entire routine depended on the idea of deception: deceiving his co-stars and unwitting participants at times, but always shocking his audience in one form or another. The two entertainers had their own sets of characters but the alter-ego personas definitely share some common traits, if only in method and on a thematic level.
In 2006, Cohen broke out into the mainstream with his bumbling man-out-of-country character in "Borat," a Khazakstanian journalist who travels to America in order to learn the secret ways of its populace, its high-calorie lifestyle and its Pamela Anderson. Soon, Cohen will return to the public eye with "Bruno," also a man-out-of-country journalist seeking knowledge of America's greatest fashion secrets and testing the boundaries of the nation's most homophobic civilians.
Watch This: Borat is interviewed by David Letterman; Bruno, ah, presents an award.
Kaufman, meanwhile, made his mark by way of a similarly foreign character -- namely, the Foreign Man, who would later transform into his classic "Taxi" character Latka. His routine depended on a sheepish obliviousness to the ways of American culture, often resulting in a mixture of cute and frustrating responses from those around him -- just as has been the case with Borat and Bruno.
Watch This: Foreign Man requests a kiss, kiss, kiss; Latka reminds you of what's important in life.
Another of Kaufman's most popular characters was Tony Clifton, a moustache-and-glasses clad lounge singer persona that the comedian would utilize in his own opening acts. In other words, Kaufman-as-Clifton would open comedy shows for Kaufman-as-Kaufman. While characters like Latka -- and even Cohen's Borat and Bruno -- weren't meant to intentionally offend those surrounding them, the Clifton persona made a point of harrassing and belittling the audience at every opportunity, often to the point of humorlessness... which, of course, made it all the more hilarious.
Watch This: Tony Clifton opens a legendary Andy Kaufman performance at Carnegie Hall, better known as "Milk & Cookies."
The closest that Cohen comes to the Tony Clifton character is his Ali G persona, the hip hop loving British journalist who headlined "Da Ali G Show." Unlike Borat and Bruno, Ali G took a Clifton-esque approach with those he interviewed, often utilizing flawed hard-hitting journalism tactics against his interviewees ("You're a racialist"). He even mocked his guests on occasion, most notably during one interview where he couldn't stifle his laughter after learning that a guest was a virgin.
Watch This: Ali G interviews a group about religion and asks the all-important question: "Can God do better stuff than David Blaine?"
In the end, what unifies Cohen and Kaufman the most is not the similarities in their specific performances, but the shocking methods and unmatched dedication to the characters they whose identities they assume. Truly, no two entertainers have ever melded so completely into their on-screen and on-stage personas, creating a legacy of laughs that have flourished long after Mr. Kaufman's death and continue on in Mr. Cohen's life.
What are some of your favorite Andy Kaufman sketches? Sacha Baron Cohen sketches?
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