A federal judge today dismissed a lawsuit filed by the guy who ran away from Borat screaming like a little bitch (you can see him at 0:24 of the trailer).

Jeffrey Lemerond, who appeared in the trailer and a 13-second clip in "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan," sued 20th Century Fox, a unit of News Corp., in federal court in Manhattan in June.  Lemerond claimed the filmmakers unlawfully used his image after he was seen in the movie on New York’s streets running from the fictional Kazakh television reporter, "fleeing in apparent terror, screaming for Mr. Cohen to ‘go away,"’ court documents said.

Keep in mind that the filmmakers blurred this jackass’ face in the movie.  So, to sum up, the movie made some guy look like a douchebag, and that guy outed himself as the douchebag by suing the filmmakers for making him look like a douchebag.

U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska said the film fell under a broad exception to that claim because it was "newsworthy." She said while the film appealed "to the most childish and vulgar in its viewers," it attempted "an ironic commentary of ‘modern’ American culture." [Source]

Great, thanks for sharing your opinion there, Judge Prudey.  To date, the courts have also dismissed suits by the residents of the Romanian town used to represent Kazakhstan, and the douchebag frat boys from South Carolina with whom Borat shares an RV ride.  Hey, guess what, dickheads: if you looked like a dickhead in the movie, maybe you’re just a dickhead; it’s not like they used CGI. Now you see what the rest of us have been seeing all these years.

Kansas is all abuzz with news that a film crew is roaming around claiming to be shooting a documentary about “American culture”, when they’re actually shooting a “Borat-like prank”. 

Luckily for the upcoming Bruno movie, there aren’t many local journalists who get HBO or who’ve watched a movie in the last 20 years.

Here’s a story about a crew getting kicked out of the Wichita airport ("Witnesses say it almost looked like pornography").  Here’s another from Topeka about a pastor who initially gave the production company permission to film, only to figure out something was up ("one of them was dressed ‘biblically’) and bar them from his church’s Easter play.  From the video (sorry I can’t embed it): 

Could it be that this is the same film company [as Borat]?  Who knows what the crew was up to.  But one thing Pastor Smith knows, “I don’t want anyone to go through what we just went through. Or worse.  Thankfully, God protected us."

The reports said the crews claimed to be from Germany (Bruno supposedly works for Austrian Gay TV), so, though none of the local news people have mentioned it yet, these were almost certainly segments for the Bruno movie.

I’m pretty sure all local news reporters are either really old or borderline retarded.  Getting the news from your local network affiliate is basically like talking to your grandma after she comes home from church.  Coming up at six: I heard from Edna that the Jacobs boy just graduated from law school.

Big thanks to sharp-eyed tipster Daniel for this one.

According to the London Sunday Times, Sacha Baron Cohen (Borat) is set to play Abbie Hoffman in Steven Spielberg’s The Trial of the Chicago Seven.  Hoffman, as you’ll remember, is that one guy. 

DreamWorks inked a deal with Aaron Sorkin [Charlie Wilson's War] to write the script for the project in July. Spielberg is producing alongside Walter Parkes and Laurie MacDonald. 

I’m sure it will be a loving tribute to a counter culture icon who never abandons his ideals, created by people who would cut your belly open if they thought there was a penny in it. 

Spielberg also has an Abraham Lincoln movie starring Liam Neeson in the works, and is lined up to direct one of the Tintin movies (Peter Jackson is also set to direct one).  As for me, I’m probably just gonna finish this Scotch and then have a good cry.  Life’s alright, man, life’s alright.

Borat portrayer and Kosher-keeping Jew Sacha Baron Cohen* got his first Hanukkah present today, a lawsuit from the guy in the above clip.

Michael Psenicska said he was paid $500 in cash to give Borat a driving lesson. He described the experience as "surreal," saying Cohen drove erratically down residential streets, drank alcohol and yelled to a female pedestrian he would pay her $10 for "sexy time."

The lawsuit seeks $400,000 in actual damages and additional punitive damages for misleading Psenicska and for emotional harm he continues to suffer. Psenicska said if he had known the true nature of the film, he never would have participated. [Reuters]

Oh cry us a f*cking river, dude.  You got paid $500 bucks AND ended up a movie star. Not to mention managing to come off as the sanest one in the whole movie.  For $500, you should be happy to blackout and wake up in the strangest of places with all manner of non-sharp objects up your ass (hookers tell me the sharp stuff costs an extra thou),

What hell kind of name is Psenicska, anyway?  It sounds communist to me.  There are a suspicious number of consonants.  Plus, his big vagina is always covered in red. 

Learn to use the Nigerian scam like everyone else next time you’re short on cash, you whiney dicklicker. 

^{*Forgot to include "Despicable Isla Fisher Defiler" I’m not usually down with short chicks, but God I love her.}

Sacha Baron Cohen is setting out on a book tour as Borat, to promote Borat: Touristic Guidings to Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, which is said to already be the number one purchase among awkward fathers torturing their children with bad impressions in a desperate attempt to relate.

Asked for his thoughts on the 2008 presidential election, Borat answered:

I cannot believe that it possible a woman can become Premier of US and A – in Kazakhstan, we say that to give a woman power, is like to give a monkey a gun – very dangerous. We do not give monkeys guns any more in Kazakhstan ever since the Astana Zoo massacre of 2003 when Torkin the orang-utan shoot 17 schoolchildrens. I personal would like the basketball player, Barak Obamas to be Premier.

I don’t know whether to praise him for still being funny or curse him for ensuring that we’ll be hearing "ees ni’ice" from now until the Earth crashes into the sun.  Perhaps I’ll just continue to pray for his death.  Isla Fisher, you will be mine.  How is she so goddamned cute?  She’s like a baby polar bear that I’d like to bone.  So basically she’s like a baby polar bear.