'Running Man' will keep on running SBS entertianment program "Running Man" /Courtesy of SBSBy Lee Jin-aIn a surprising turnaround, SBS TV said Tuesday it will not stop airing popular Sunday entertainment show “Running Man,” scrapping plans to end the program in February.The broadcaster said in December it would drop the show amid controversy over the removal of two long-standing cast members — actress Song Ji-hyo and K-pop singer Kim Jong-kook."Considering opinions from local and overseas fans who opposed the decision (discontinuation), SBS and six cast members have decided to continue the program with the current cast," SBS said. "Director Nam Seung-yong of SBS Entertainment, who first planned 'Running Man' back in 2010, met with each of the cast members at the beginning of the year. He apologized for the controversy and all six members agreed to keep going."Nam expressed appreciation for the agreement. “We will try our best to produce a better show so that we can repay the support and love we have received from our fans at home and abroad for the past seven years,” he saJan 25, 2017
Actor Lee Dong-wook prepares for Asian tour Actor Lee Dong-wook / Courtesy of King Kong Entertainment By Hong Dam-youngKorean actor Lee Dong-wook will tour Asia, according to his agency, King Kong Entertainment, on Wednesday.Lee, 35, will begin the tour with fan meetings in Korea on March 12 and visit Asian countries starting in April. He recently starred in the tvN fantasy romance-drama “Guardian: The Lonely and Great God,” which ended last Saturday with an average viewership rating of 20.5 percent. He played the Grim Reaper, partnering immortal goblin Kim Shin, portrayed by Gong Yoo.“Lee has been extremely busy with photo shoots and commercials after the end of the drama,” an agency official said.“But he has been preparing for the tour in his spare time to thank his fans all over the world.”Details of the Korean fan meetings will be announced after the Lunar New Year holiday.Lee is also known for roles in SBS’s “My Girl” (2005) and “Scent of a Woman” (2011), and MBC’s “Hotel King” (2014). Jan 25, 2017
"Tomorrow with You” revolves around secret time traveller Shin Min-a, left, and Lee Je-hoon pose at a press conference for “Tomorrow With You,” Monday. / YonhapBy Park Jin-hai“Guardian: The Lonely and Great God,” the much-hyped fantasy drama on tvN, concluded with grand fanfare last week. Time-traveling romantic comedy “Tomorrow with You” will take its slot, with viewers questioning if the new tvN drama could replicate the success of its predecessor.The 16-episode drama, starring actress Shin Min-a and actor Lee Je-hoon, tells the story of Yoo So-joon, played by Lee, a young CEO of a real estate company who has the ability to travel through time.It was penned by Heo Sung-hye who previously wrote the scenario of movie “All About My Wife (2012)” and directed by Yoo Je-won, whose works include “Oh My Ghostess (2015)” and “High School King of Savvy (2014).” The drama began filming in September and wrapped in mid-December.Actress Shin plays the role of Lee’s love interest Song Ma-rin, an unknown shopping mall photographer who had once been a popular child actress.AfterJan 23, 2017
TV Review 'Infinite Challenge' to go off air for seven weeks “Infinite Challenge” producers and cast will take time out to relax, starting next week. / Courtesy of MBCBy Lee Jin-aPopular MBC reality show “Infinite Challenge” will be suspended for seven weeks to give directors and cast time to relax and refresh themselves.The weekly show has been aired since 2006 with only a handful of exceptions, mostly caused by external disasters such as the Sewol sinking, leaving producers and cast chronically short of ideas.The temporary suspension was made public during the show’s latest episode on Jan. 21.“We have decided to take some time to revamp and reorganize our show,” said Yu Jae-seok, the main host of the six-member program. “For seven weeks, we will focus on ‘normalizing’ the program. We will do our best to return with more entertaining episodes.”“Infinite Challenge” is one of Korea’s longest-running TV programs, which has among the highest viewership ratings for Saturday prime-time shows.Despite this, the show’s main producer Kim Tae-ho has often said thosJan 22, 2017
Seo In-young agency apologizes for 'cussing' Singer Seo In-young’s agency Star Empire on Thursday has apologized for a “cussing” controversy surrounding her. / Screencaptured from the InternetBy Hong Dam-youngSinger Seo In-young’s agency Star Empire has apologized for a “cussing” controversy surrounding her.The Thursday apology was made a day after a video on social media showed Seo angrily cursing while talking on the phone.Despite the apology, netizens demanded that Seo apologize directly herself.The 45-second video was filmed while she was in Dubai to shoot JTBC’s TV variety show “With You: Season 2,” where she played the wife of rapper Crown J.An anonymous netizen, claiming to be a member of the show’s staff, released the controversial video.The person who posted the video also claimed on social media that Seo was rude and stubborn and caused conflicts with the show’s producers. “After checking the video, we admit that Seo had trouble with staff in Dubai and that we should have been more attentive to the problem,” said the agency in a statemeJan 20, 2017
Four finalists of 'Phantom Singer' to become Korea's Il Divo Finalist in JTBC’s “Phantom Singer,” “Hyoong Spresso.” / Courtesy of JTBCBy Yun Suh-youngThe project to find the final four people who will become Korea's first crossover quartet similar to Italy's Il Divo is nearing an end with the last episode of JTBC's "Phantom Singer" to air Jan. 27 with the announcement of the winners.Ahead of the airing of the second to last episode Jan. 20 featuring the 12 finalists divided into three teams of four performing in the first half of the final round in front of a real audience, the singers and the program's producer met with the press to brief them on their past five months and plans going forward."We deliberately divided the final round into two sections so that we could get well-rounded reviews from the judges and the audience. It's difficult to judge a team's performance with just one performance. So we decided to let them perform twice in front of a real audience and gather their votes on which team they liked the best," said the producer of the show, Kim Hyung-joong, during a press conference Thursday at thJan 20, 2017
People's Choice Awards Jennifer Lopez attends the People’s Choice Awards 2017 at Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, Calif., Wednesday. / AFP-YonhapJan 19, 2017
'Infinite Challenge' takes break for the first time since 2006 By Park Jin-hai“Infinite Challenge,” MBC’s popular entertainment show airing every Saturday for nearly ten years non-stop, will take a seven-week break starting Jan. 28 at the request of the show’s producer.The unprecedented decision was made due to a lack of ideas and accumulated fatigue of the show’s staff.Since debuting in May 2006, the variety show has featured episodes with fresh ideas in no fixed format and has been on air every weekend for the past 10 years. The only time the show was not on air was when MBC’s union staged the nation’s longest media strike in 2012, calling for the resignation of its president.The program’s producer Kim Tae-ho recently left a message on social media saying, “My heart races fast, as if I’m chased after… If Santa Claus can give a present this Christmas to our production staff, who return home late with heavy minds, please give us a one-month break to look back and another two months for preparations.” He hashtagged phrases like “Let us live. If it continues like this, Jan 18, 2017
영상 외국인이 본 K-pop 아이돌 외모 순위는? 2016년 100명의 한국 여성 아이돌 가수 중 가장 아름다운 얼굴을 가진 사람은 누구일까?지난 1월 동영상 공유 사이트 유튜브에는 “2016년 가장 예쁜 케이팝 가수 100명”의 제목으로 한 영상이 게재되었다.영상에서는 1위를 소녀시대 태연, 2위를 소녀시대 윤아, 3위를 미쓰에이 수지로 꼽았다.영상을 본 네티즌들은 “태연은 정말 예쁘다. 하지만, 가끔 어떤 사진에서는 윤아가 더 예뻐 보일 때도 있다,” “예쁘다는 기준은 주관적인 것인데 순위를 왜 매기는지 모르겠다”와 같은 반응을 보였다. 디지털뉴스부@Jan 16, 2017
Newcomer actors mature through 'Kim Bok-joo' A scene from “Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo” / Courtesy of MBCBy Kim Jae-heunLee Sung-kyung poses during an interview at a cafe in Hapjeong, western Seoul, last week. / Courtesy of YG EntertainmentNam Joo-hyukposes during an interview at a cafe in Hapjeong, western Seoul, last week. / Courtesy of YG EntertainmentIt was a big burden for both newcomer actress Lee Sung-kyoung and actor Nam Ju-hyuk to play the title roles in the coming-of-age sports drama “Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo” that aired its last episode on MBC last week.Although the drama’s viewer rating only recorded 5.2 percent on its last episode according to Nielson Korea, which is not considered as high for a show on a public TV network, Lee and Nam said they could not be more fortunate to portray the characters they have played for the last three months.“We did not have any expectations for the audience rating as we were still newcomers and we would be playing cute characters the viewers could meet in their daily lives,” said Lee during the interview with The Korea Jan 16, 2017
