Book sales jump as Guardian's popularity soars A scene from “Guardian / Courtesy of tvNBy Park Jin-haiThe continued popularity of tvN’s fantasy-romance drama, "Guardian: The Lonely and Great God," is pushing books featured in the show onto the best-seller list.Gong Yoo, who plays an immortal goblin, reads the book “The Stars Might Take Your Pain Away” to his human bride, played by Kim Go-eun.In the scene, Gong looks at Kim from across the street, who gives him a big smile, and he thinks of one of the poems and begins to recite it.“The size of a mass is not proportional to its volumeThat little girl as small as a violetThat little girl that flutters like a flower petalPulls me with a mass greater than the Earth,” he said.“Writer Kim Eun-sook is a book lover,” an official of the drama production company Hwa & Dam Pictures said. “She takes inspiration from books and uses those books as part of the drama material. The book used in ‘Guardian’ is also handpicked by the writer and included in the script.”“The Stars Might Take Your Pain Away” is a comDec 27, 2016
British singer George Michael dead at age 53 George MichaelGeorge Michael, who rocketed to stardom with WHAM! and went on to enjoy a long and celebrated solo career lined with controversies, has died, his publicist said Sunday (on Christmas). He was 53.Michael enjoyed immense popularity early in his career as a teenybopper idol, delivering a series of hits such as ``Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go,'' ``Young Guns (Go For It),'' ``Freedom'' and "Last Christmas"As a solo artist, he developed into a more serious singer and songwriter, lauded by critics for his tremendous vocal range. Michael, with startling good looks and an easy stage manner, formed the boy band WHAM! with his school friend Andrew Ridgeley in the early 1980's. Helped by MTV, the cheerful duo easily crossed the Atlantic to become popular in the United States. Dec 26, 2016
'Descendants of the Sun' sets new standards for K-dramas in 2016 A poster of “Uncontrollably Fond” / Courtesy of KBSBy Park Jin-haiWhether it is the formulaic romantic comedies from local broadcasters or the viewers becoming increasingly bored with familiar material, TV stations have been suffering from falling viewership rates for years.Diversified broadcasting channels have aggravated the situation and now anything over 10 percent in viewership is considered a success.Throughout last year, among the weekday dramas, SBS medical thriller “Yong-pal” was the only one that narrowly topped the 20 percent rating mark. 2016 has been a year that has put an end to this.The year opened with the famous “Reply” series. Somehow success was expected for the third installment of the popular family drama — the highly acclaimed “Reply 1988” was a milestone, the final episode of which recorded almost a 20 percent viewership, the highest rate in Korean cable television history.But what really made a phenomenal change was the KBS wartime romance “Descendants of the Sun.” The drama, staDec 25, 2016
Psy speaks about alleged links with Choi Soon-sil / Courtesy of YG EntertainmentBy Hong Dam-youngK-pop star Psy spoke out on Friday about rumors of him being linked with Choi Soon-sil, the central figure of the corruption scandal engulfing President Park Geun-hye.He denied allegations that Choi helped him get invitations to high-profile events involving President Park at home and abroad and that he also received other favors.“I wanted to speak out about the rumors but I didn’t because I thought they were so worthless and preposterous,” Psy said during his annual year-end concert at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on Friday.“I thought people would just ignore the groundless rumors. But all I received were comments criticizing me and I felt people believed them.”Psy has been keeping a low profile since early November when rumors emerged that he was a member of an entertainers’ football team called FC Hoeori that was allegedly under the control of Choi’s elder sister, Choi Soon-deuk, and her daughter, Jang Si-ho.The two were suspected of wielding influence in the entertainment industry through tDec 25, 2016
Star-studded KBS drama 'Hwarang' falls flat Promotional photo for the KBS drama “Hwarang: The Poet Warior Youth” / Coutresy of KBSBy Park Jin-haiAnother much anticipated KBS drama, “Hwarang: The Poet Warrior Youth,” premiered on Monday — with expectations and concerns.Taking the material of the Silla Kingdom Hwarang, an elite group of young, handsome men who trained themselves in the arts, culture and self-defense, for the first time, the fantasy period drama that casts a bunch of pretty-faced K-pop idols should have been enough to make drama fans clamor. It follows the largely flopped SBS “Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo” that hired just as many splendidly handsome idol boy band members but got the cold shoulder from audiences because of their bad acting.The new Monday-Tuesday KBS drama — starring Go A-ra and Park Seo-joon, with Choi Min-ho of boy band SHINee, Kim Tae-hyung of BTS and Park Hyung-sik of ZE:A — tells the story of the passion, love and friendships of six Hwarang members.From the start, it seems almost inevitable to be compared with thDec 23, 2016
Super Junior's Shindong returns from military duty Shindong of Korean boy band Super Junior has completed his mandatory military service, his agency said on Friday.The 31-year-old singer and TV persona has finished his 21-month tour of duty, S.M. Entertainment said in a press release. Shindong will resume his entertainment career with KBS 2TV's celebrity travel reality show "Battle Trip" with bandmate Leeteuk.Shindong first debuted in 2005 with the group's first single "Super Junior 05," and gained international popularity with hit songs like "Sorry, Sorry," "U" and "Mr. Simple."After years of music activities, Shindong broadened his solo portfolio to include television and radio shows.In December 2014, he became the first Super Junior member to tie the knot, and then left to fulfill his military obligations in March of the following year. (Yonhap)Dec 23, 2016
US network to air remake of K-drama U.S. network ABC will remake SBS TV drama “God’s Gift: 14 days.” The series is set to air next summer on American TV screens. / Courtesy of SBSBy Lee Jin-aAn American version of SBS TV drama “God’s Gift: 14 days” will air next summer.According to Variety, a U.S. show business daily, the ABC network has ordered “Somewhere Between” to series as a 10-episode thriller based on “God’s Gift: 14 days.” It will be the first remake of a Korean drama to be shown on a U.S. network.Variety reported that the series will be written by Stephen Tolkin — writer of famous ABC TV series “Brothers & Sisters” — and co-produced by Canadian media executive producer Ivan Fecan, film producer Joseph Broido and Tolkin. The project has not been cast yet, but reportedly will shoot in Vancouver, Canada. Aired in 2014, “God’s Gift: 14 days” revolves around a mother who travels back and forth in time to save her loving daughter. Korean actress Lee Bo-young playedDec 23, 2016
Growing headache for Korean showbiz industry: Chinese plagiarism South Korean entertainment has widely been reported to be suffering from the fallout of a political dispute with China, but the real problem is the rise in plagiarism of Korean TV programs there, industry insiders said Thursday.At least seven variety programs that are set to air in China early next year are illegal copies of Korean shows, and the number is expected to grow if all 2,000 Chinese TV networks are taken into account, the sources said, speaking on the condition of anonymity."Finding Genius," an SBS TV program that seeks to discover and nurture prodigies across the nation, served as the basis for an upcoming show on China's Hunan TV called "Curious Child," while "Three Meals a Day," a popular cooking-reality show on cable channel tvN, has been reproduced in China under the title "The Life We Long For," according to the sources.TV officials attributed the increase in such plagiarism to the Chinese government's ban on Korean cultural content, which came in the wake of Seoul's decision in July to place an advanced U.S. missile shield on its soil. The defense system, known by iDec 22, 2016
Fantasy drama “Guardian” enjoys unprecedented popularity Scenes from “Guardian” / Courtesy of tvNBy Park Jin-hai The fantasy romance, “Guardian: The Lonely and Great God,” starring actor Gong Yoo, continues to top TV viewer ratings and enjoys immense popularity.Aided by fresh story material, solid plot, movie-like visual effects, star actors and most of all the touching and romantic lines that are characteristic of writer Kim Eun-sook, tvN’s new show has topped the list of buzzworthy dramas for three straight weeks since its Dec. 2 debut. Kim previously wrote the megahit drama “Descendants of the Sun.”As soon as “Guardian,” the story of a goblin, debuted, it topped the buzzworthy TV drama chart, surpassing that of Descendants of the Sun, according to the Good Data Corporation.The goblin, played by Gong, is under a spell to live an eternal life and meets a human bride played by Kim Go-eun.Guardian has been showing viewership growth. The sixth episode of Guardian, posted a record 12.9 percent viewership rate Saturday, which is the third best record for a cable channel.So far, thDec 20, 2016
Big age no barrier to stars' romances Kim Go-eunShin Ha-kyunDon LeeYe Jung-hwaLee Yoo-youngKim Joo-hyuckBy Ko Dong-hwanIn a culture where people treat others based on age and address them casually or with honorifics accordingly, the age gap for couples can also be a concern ― especially when they are celebrities.Three star pairs who became couples within the past five months surprised fans not just because the women were younger than the men by two-digit figures but because the big gaps were all coincidently 17 years.The magic number was first mentioned last August when actor Shin Ha-kyun, 42, was reported to be dating actress Kim Go-eun, 25.The news caught many by surprise because the two had hardly been considered as a romantic pair because of the age gap.The general belief was that a woman and a man 17 years older would have little in common and might even be the butt of jokes.Then, three months later, actor Don Lee, 45, and fitness trainer Ye Jung-hwa, 28, announced their romance.Both have fitness training in common ― one from many Korean TV and theater hits like “Train to Busan” and &Dec 19, 2016
