ALMATY, Kazakhstan (AP) – A leading Kazakh writer has nominated actor Sacha Baron Cohen for a national award for popularizing Kazakhstan.

Novelist Sapabek Asip-uly called on the Kazakh Club of Art Patrons to give Cohen its annual award, according to a letter published by the Vremya newspaper Thursday.

Cohen’s fictional Kazakh character Borat “has managed to spark an immense interest of the whole world in Kazakhstan – something our authorities could not do during the years of independence,” said Asip-uly, who chairs the writers’ guild “The Land and Destiny of Kazakhs.”

Authorities in the ex-Soviet republic have been enraged by Borat’s unflattering portrayal of Kazakh life in the spoof documentary, “Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit of Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan.”

“If state officials completely lack a sense of humor, their country becomes a laughing stock,” Asip-uly said.

The film, following Borat on a journey across America to report to his homeland on its culture and lifestyles, has become a runaway hit and generated controversy for its misogynist and racist scenes. Dspite the film’s worldwide success, Cohen has not received recognition in Kazakhstan, Asip-uly said.

The award of the Kazakh Club of Art Patrons was established in 2005.

Asip-uly is known for novels describing the Russian colonization of Kazakh lands and the Stalinist purges that decimated Kazakhstan’s political and cultural elite in the 1930s.

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STOCKHOLM, Sweden (AP) – A small Swedish town is searching for a bride-to-be who looks like Ingrid Bergman to re-enact the actress’s first wedding in 1937.

The search was initiated by the folklore society in Stode, 235 miles north of Stockholm, to mark the 70th anniversary of Bergman’s wedding to Petter Aron Lindstrom in the town church.

“We’re looking for a Swedish look-alike, and it’s going to be a real wedding – there won’t be any cheating – and we’ll pay for the wedding dress and dinner,” said Gertrud Svensson, a deputy member of the society.

The wedding is planned for summer 2007 and, aside from featuring a look-alike bride and wedding dress, guests will be invited to dine on the original porcelain at the wedding party. The groom does not necessarily have to resemble Lindstrom, who came from Stode.

So far, the guest-list includes the daughter of Bergman and Lindstrom, Pia Lindstrom, as well as other family members living in Stode.

Bergman’s films include “Casablanca,” “Notorious,” and “Anastasia.” She won three Academy Awards and married three times, including to Italian director Roberto Rossellini. Bergman died of cancer in 1982 at the age of 67.

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FLORENCE, S.C. (AP) – Actress Liv Tyler says when she first saw the title of the script for her new film, “The Strangers,” she thought it was a comedy.

Turns out it was a thriller about a couple trying to survive when three masked strangers invade their home.

“I had stacks of scripts on the plane,” she told the Morning News for Thursday’s editions. “I liked the title of this one because it sounded like a comedy. After reading the first three pages, I was stuck on the script and called my agent and said “Please get it for me. I want to be in this movie.’ “

She has been in Florence making “The Strangers,” costarring Scott Speedman, since Oct. 10. Filming is expected to be finished Dec. 4 and the film is scheduled for release next October.

Tyler took last year off after the birth of her first child, Milo, with husband, Royston Langdon. She said she returned to acting because her time off made her realize how much she liked her work.

Calling it a “reflective period,” Tyler said, “That year off helped me realize I love what I do.”

Tyler, daughter of Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler, played the elf princess Arwen in “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy. Her screen credits also include “Jersey Girl” and “Armageddon.”