By Park Si-soo
Staff Reporter
The K-pop singer Ivy topped the nation's No. 1 search engine Naver's most searched word list last week.
Threatened by her former boy friend alleging he has a video clip containing undesirable footage of the two, the female singer has stopped appearing on TV screens since then. He was arrested on Nov. 2 on suspicion of requesting 45 million won from Ivy and her management agency, Fantom Entertainment Group. The former boy friend, only identified by his surname Yoo, testified under questioning that the female pop star had enjoyed a love-triangle with him and another male singer.
Hollywood star Paris Hilton placed second with her visit to Seoul on Wednesday at the invitation of a local sportswear company, for which she serves as a model. During the visit, she made an appearance on a variety of TV programs and events, leaving for the U.S. on Sunday.
Coming in third were rumors of comedian Yoo Jae-seok's breakup. The comedian, who is now in love with news presenter Na Kyung-eun, was surrounded by a rumor that the two separated earlier this week. But the story was deemed false, as the two appeared on screen in similar clothes, which symbolize their affection toward each other they said.
Female actress Ok So-ri took the fifth place. She was accused of commiting adultery earlier this month by her husband Park Chul. She underwent a first cross-examination with her husband on Thursday at Ilsan police station in Gyeonggi Province. An opera singer identified by his surname as Jung, and allegedly the partner in Ok's extramarital affair, and her old friend also showed up unexpectedly.
Coming in sixth was ``Taewangsasingi'' (The Four Guardian Gods of the King), a blockbuster TV drama with Bae yong-joon taking a leading role. Oh Kwang-rok, an actor featuring in the soap opera, said in an interview with a TV program that ``once an actor leaps into stardom, they easily make insulting comments toward other people including entertainers engaging in the same field.'' After the interview went on air, numerous netizens raised the question that the comment was made to chide Bae yong-joon. But Oh said this was not the case.
Seventh was the deceased soccer player Kim ji-soo. Kim, who served as a key player for the women's national soccer team, died on Nov. 2. She had been listed as brain dead after she underwent surgery to treat a knee injury last March.
Seo Tai-ji, the iconic figure in the Korean pop music industry, came back under the spotlight of local media. An album made to commemorate the 15th year of his debut was sold out in 10 minutes on the Internet. Seotaiji Company, which planned the special album, said the memorial event for the legendary singer, which was launched last Tuesday, has drawn as many as 20,000 visitors in six days.