biography

Kenneth "Ken" Davitian (born June 19, 1953) is an American actor who is best known for his role as Borat's producer (Azamat Bagatov) in the 2006 comedy film Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, in which he speaks the Eastern dialect of Armenian throughout the film. Kenneth Davitian was born in Los Angeles on June 19, 1953, to an Armenian American family from Montebello, California. His maternal grandparents were survivors of the Armenian genocide. His father was a Red Army soldier during World War II who was captured by Wehrmacht forces and placed at an Armenian Legion camp in Stuttgart, Germany. After the end of the war, he immigrated to the US through the efforts of restaurateur and chef George Mardikian, known for his philanthropy. Davitian graduated from Garfield High School in East Los Angeles and Whittier College. His teenage idol was Burt Reynolds, who greatly influenced his choice of becoming an actor. Davitian would go on to perform in the film Pocket Listing, which also featured Reynolds. Davitian worked in his father's waste management company. Davitian is fluent in Armenian; he speaks the language as Azamat in Borat.