Actor's hilarious YouTube channel becomes popular

By Kang Aa-young

Lee Deok-hwa

An increasing number of celebrities, including comedians, singers and actors, are jumping on the YouTube bandwagon as creators to share their raw stories.

Veteran actor Lee Deok-hwa, 66, created hisYouTube channel ― Deok-hwa TV ―earlier this month.

He has uploadedseven videos inthe past two weeks.In those videos, he showed his down-to-Earth personality, his real life and how he spends his days.

He takes on some challenges such as eating alone at a restaurant. A sociable man, Lee said his first experience eating alone was quite uncomfortable.

Among his videos, his ice fishing video is the most popular.

He went ice fishing on Jan. 1 this year. He has breakfast with three of his longtime friends at a restaurant near Lake Pyeongtaek in Gyeonggi Province. He hilariously introduced his friends who are addicted to fishing and one of them closed his business for the day to go fishing.

The video, which was uploaded three days ago, has over 6,200 views as of Tuesday noon.

Viewers reacted favorably to the senior actor's YouTube experiment.

Some wrote “Hilarious,”and some said they wanted him to teach them how to fish.

“I have experience in TV dramas, movies, shows and even reality shows for 50years. But becoming a YouTube creator is a whole new experience. I decided to take on this challenge with a hope to interact with younger people,” Lee said. “I hope my videos can help people around my age to get the courage to try new experiences like I've done.”

Debuted in 1972, Lee starred in many movies. His career peak came in the 1980s and1990s when he won Best Actor awards from the Grand Bell Awards three times for “Lost Love”(1989), “Fly High Run Far” (1991) and “I Will Survive” (1993).

Lee became the first Korean actor to win the Best Actor award at the Moscow International Film Festival for “I Will Survive” in 1993.

His new challenge as a YouTube creator will also be aired in KBS's upcoming reality program “Deokhwa TV” following month.

Last year, actor Jung Chan who is best known for his charming prince roles on TV gained public attention for his appearance on the History Digital Channel's online show "Bulletproof Jacket," bragging of his hidden passion and knowledge of military gear.

One key difference of online platforms like YouTube is that it allows interactive communication with fans.