# Favourite funny foreigner from a fully fictional fatherland **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted\ **Created:** [May 22, 2023, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441 "2023-05-22T21:18:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![psychonaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psychonaut/32/4655_2.png) [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2023, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/1 "2023-05-22T21:18:50Z")
_Poll ([view on site](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/1))_ There’s a trope in sketch and sitcom comedy of the “funny foreigner”. You know the one: - hails from a faraway land that no one has ever heard of, or whose name is never disclosed - speaks in a heavy but unplaceable accent - prone to uttering hilarious malapropisms - known for a famous catchphrase - has huge gaps in their understanding of local norms and customs Which such character gave you the most laughs? (To keep things simple, let’s make the first bullet point a hard requirement. Balki and Miss Swan are in because their homelands of Mypos and Kuvaria, respectively, are entirely fictional; Latka and Fez are in because we never find out where they’re from. Characters like Borat and the Swedish Chef are out because Kazakhstan and Sweden are real places, even if the writers take some liberties with how they’re depicted.) ---
**Author:** ![NinthAcolyte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ninthacolyte/32/13676_2.png) [@NinthAcolyte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinthAcolyte)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2023, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/2 "2023-05-22T21:28:02Z")
My vote goes to Stan and Yosh Schmenge of Leutonia (not Lutonia, which is a real place,) played on SCTV by John Candy and Eugene Levy! [“Christmas in Leutonia”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0mwv0rqmso) is required yuletide viewing in the House of Nine. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2023, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/3 "2023-05-22T21:35:35Z")
Yortuk and Georg Festrunk from Saturday Night Live, back when it was funny. What? you say. They’re from Czechoslovakia? Show me that country on a (current) map. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2023, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/4 "2023-05-22T21:39:27Z")
Martin Short playing the wedding caterer in Father of the Bride. “And now for wadding kek.” Country never identified. Bronson Pinchot as Serge in Beverly Hills Cop. ---
**Author:** ![zimaane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a3d4f5/32.png) [@zimaane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zimaane)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2023, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/5 "2023-05-22T21:48:46Z")
Borat from Kazakhstan ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2023, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/6 "2023-05-22T22:00:42Z")
Well it is actually _ **Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan** _ and the OP has ruled him out. Which I dispute, because **Glorious** Nation of Kazakhstan is, of course, entirely fictional. Still I would suggest not a single foreigner, but the whole country: **[Molwanien](https://molwanien.de/)**, in english probably Molwania. I fear the book was never translated, which is a pity for you all, because it his hilarious. Everything is true! Made up, yes, but still deeply true. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2023, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/7 "2023-05-22T22:03:00Z")
My vote actually goes to Carol Kane as Simka Grava from _Taxi._ She took the basic Gravas concept and not only imitated it, but built on it. I read somewhere that Andy Kaufman “auditioned” Kane by taking her out to dinner and making the two converse the entire evening in the language of the old country. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2023, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/8 "2023-05-22T22:15:25Z")
Does the far-away land have to be on Earth? Not, for instance, Ork or Melmac? (Of couse, they probably fail on the “accent” criterion.) ---
**Author:** ![griffin1977](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/977dab/32.png) [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2023, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/9 "2023-05-22T22:20:19Z")
Jerzy Baloski? (or one of his relatives) A bit dubious as its strongly implied he’s Russian (not to mention being revealed as not being foreign at all in one episode). https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=300&width=400&href=https://www.facebook.com/alexeisayleofficial/videos/jerzy-the-young-ones/10153786731729538/ ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2023, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/10 "2023-05-22T22:38:59Z")
I voted Balki. But just for the sake of completeness, would the Elbonians from Dilbert count? Or does it have to be a single identifiable character? ---
**Author:** ![minlokwat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/minlokwat/32/2844_2.png) [@minlokwat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minlokwat)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2023, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/11 "2023-05-22T23:08:59Z")
TONY: You know anything about bisexuals? LATKA: Of course. They are very popular in my country. TONY: They are? LATKA: Oh yes. Almost everybody have them. And one of our favorite sports is racing them. And when we are not using them we have special racks where we chain them up at night. TONY: Latka! I’m not talking about bicycles! I’m talking about bisexuals! LATKA: So am I. ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2023, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/12 "2023-05-23T00:19:37Z")
He wouldn’t be my pick, but just to add another one to the list there’s Viktor Navorski, Tom Hanks’ character in _The Terminal_, from the fictional country of Krakozhia. ---
**Author:** ![psychonaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psychonaut/32/4655_2.png) [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2023, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/13 "2023-05-23T04:46:02Z")
> [@Pardel-Lux](#): > > Still I would suggest not a single foreigner, but the whole country: **[Molwanien](https://molwanien.de/)**, in english probably Molwania. I fear the book was never translated, which is a pity for you all, because it his hilarious. Everything is true! Made up, yes, but still deeply true. You’re wrong – the book was originally in English (_Molvanîa: A Land Untouched by Modern Dentistry_), and I’m now kicking myself for not including Molvanîa’s most famous celebrity, Zladko Vladcik, in the poll: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/Re_1HrfOMZ4/maxresdefault.jpg "Zlad! - Elektronik Supersonik (Official Video) [HD REUPLOAD]") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Re_1HrfOMZ4) ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2023, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/14 "2023-05-23T06:03:50Z")
Huh, I always assumed Balki was Greek and Mypos was just the name of a fictional _Greek_ island, not a nation of its own. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2023, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/15 "2023-05-23T07:13:06Z")
I was wrong and you kick yourself? OK, fair enough 🙂 I would never have thought that such a book was translated, cool, cheers for the author, the publishers and the translator! ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2023, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/16 "2023-05-23T12:57:59Z")
I wanted to vote for Manuel from Fawlty Towers but he is known to be from Spain. So after that I have to go with Latka. ---
**Author:** ![Stratocaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stratocaster/32/16393_2.png) [@Stratocaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stratocaster)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2023, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/17 "2023-05-23T13:38:45Z")
My vote would go to Rufus T. Firefly, if bullet one is the only hard requirement. ---
**Author:** ![NinthAcolyte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ninthacolyte/32/13676_2.png) [@NinthAcolyte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinthAcolyte)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2023, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/18 "2023-05-23T13:47:22Z")
Oh, damn! That’s a _very_ strong pick. I would switch my vote, but I do wonder… Rufus isn’t noticeably “foreign,” he’s still Groucho doing his usual Jewish-American Groucho schtick. _Duck Soup_ is political satire, but I think it’s pretty pointedly _American_ political satire - the foriegn-ness is a lampshade, not the source of the humor. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2023, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/19 "2023-05-23T13:58:13Z")
Not a television example, but the first one who came to my mind was Twoflower from the Discworld novels. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2023, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441/20 "2023-05-23T14:05:49Z")
I’d have to vote for Hercule Poirot. I’ve never met an actual Belgian, so I’m unconvinced that country actually exists, especially after having been invaded by marching men so many times. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-funny-foreigner-from-a-fully-fictional-fatherland/984441.md?page=2)