Golfer Pak Se-ri chips in for “Take Care of My Dad” Golfer Pak Se-ri and her father Pak Joon-chul /Korea Times fileKorean professional golfer Pak Se-ri will join SBS TV program “Take Care of My Dad” with her father, Pak Joon-chul, the broadcaster said Friday.Actor Lee Deok-wha, 63, also will join the program with his daughter, Lee Ji-hyun, 31.Actors Kang Seok-woo and Jo Min-ki will step down from the program with their daughters, SBS said.Pak has been resting in Korea to heal an injury.“Pak will make special memories with her father, as she doesn’t have special childhood memories because of her career,” SBS said.Actor Lee Deok-wha and his daughter Lee Ji-hyun /Korea times fileLee Deok-wha also said he did not spend much time with his daughter when she was young. He said he wants to spend more time with her before she gets married.The show’s new season begins on Sept. 6. Aug 28, 2015By Bahk Eun-ji
Singer jailed over draft-dodging ghost claim Singer Kim Woo-jooSinger and music producer Kim Woo-joo, 30, indicted on charges of evading military service by claiming to have a mental illness and seeing ghosts, has been sentenced to a year behind bars.The first and second trials brought down a one-year sentence, citing the evasion was planned over a long time and there was a need to punish Kim considering not only the importance of military service but issues of fairness.Kim was called up in 2004, but delayed going into the military saying he had to attend college. In March 2012, he started pretending he had a mental illness.He claimed he "started seeing ghosts eight years ago," and that "he was taken to the emergency room after fainting after seeing a ghost."He reportedly saw a psychiatrist 42 times.Kim received a written diagnosis for visual and auditory hallucinations as well as insomnia and submitted it to the Military Manpower Administration. He was then notified to serve as a public service worker last October.Kim was a member of a hip-hop group but has not been in the music industry since 2012.Aug 28, 2015
CNBLUE to return with new album next month CNBLUE /Courtesy of FNC EntertainmentKorean pop rock band CNBLUE will release its first album in more than a year next month."2gether" will hit digital retailers on Sept. 14, FNC Entertainment said. It's the band's second official album and the first album since "Can't Stop," an EP released in February 2014.The CD jacket of the upcoming album, in which the logo "2gether" is enclosed by a geometric figure, was posted on the band's official Facebook page on Friday.CNBLUE chose "2gether" as the album's title to convey the message of "Let's have fun together," FNC Entertainment said.The band's ninth single, "White," released in April, was ranked No. 2 on Japan's Oricon music chart. (Yonhap) Aug 28, 2015
Tang Yan to play Lee Min-ho's leading lady in new film Korean actor Lee Min-ho, left, and Chinese actress Tang Yan, who will star in "Bounty Hunters" / Korea TimesChinese actress Tang Yan will star in the forthcoming South Korean-Chinese co-production "Bounty Hunters" as Lee Min-ho's leading lady, Lee's agency said Thursday.Tang will play a femme fatale who strikes up a romance with Lee's character in the action-comedy blockbuster about bounty hunters who capture fugitives for monetary rewards in various Asian countries such as South Korea, China and Thailand, Star House Entertainment said.The agency is the South Korean party in the 35 billion won (US$31 million) film project.The actress has starred in "Assembly" (2007) directed by Feng Xiaogang, and "Fire Of Conscience" (2010) by Hong Kong action auteur Dante Lam. Most recently, she finished shooting a television series, "Diamond Lovers," with South Korean singer-actor Rain.Directed by Shin Tae-ra, a Korean director best known for the 2009 hit "My Girlfriend Is an Agent," "Bounty Hunters" is scheduled to start filming on Sept. 2 for possible release next year.Lee will play the lead starAug 27, 2015
TV viewers crave for comedian Yoo and wife Comedian Yoo Jae-suk, left, and his wife Na Kyung-eun / Korea Times fileThe real-life couple viewers want to see most on entertainment shows are comedian Yoo Jae-suk and his wife, Na Kyung-eun, a survey shows.The Korea Broadcast Advertising Corporation said Thursday it asked 6,471 avid television fans which real-life couple they want to see most on their favorite variety programs.In the entertainment category, Yoo and Na garnered 39.3 percent of votes to top the list.Voters said they wanted to see the couple as “they are good entertainers” and because “they are celebrities (the voters) like.”The two met on MBC’s variety show headliner “Infinite Challenge,” and married in 2008.In the drama category, actor Ji Sung and his wife and actress Lee Bo-young ranked first with 42.5 percent of votes. Voters cited the couple’s “chemistry” and great acting as reasons they want to see them appear together in a romance-comedy drama.Ji and Lee have both remained active on the small screen since their marriage in 2013. Ji recently starAug 27, 2015
G-Dragon, Kiko Mizuhara split: reports G-DragonBigBang leader Kiko Mizuhara Japanese modelBigBang leader G-Dragon and his Japanese model girlfriend Kiko Mizuhara have split up, Dispatch reported Wednesday.The entertainment news outlet cited a source close to G-Dragon as saying the pair have decided to remain friends. While the two never admitted they were dating, they were often photographed together in Korea and Japan.Demanding work schedules reportedly led to the break-up. Since May, BigBang has been working on the “MADE” album project, releasing singles on the first day of each month.The band is touring three Chinese cities through Aug. 30. BigBang is then scheduled to embark on a 15-nation tour, including the United States, Canada, Australia and Mexico.Aug 27, 2015
Did model think rapper CL wasn't 'pretty'? Kim Jin-kyung, right, and Hwang Ze-quun from "My Little Television" / Screen capture from YouTubeModel Kim Jin-kyung has apologized online for making a gesture on TV that seemingly insulted rapper CL about her looks.Kim appeared on MBC’s reality entertainment show “My Little Television” Sunday with fashion designer Hwang Ze-quun.On the program, Hwang praised Kim’s prettiness and mentioned she looked like the rapper from girl band “2NE1.” Kim, however, reacted in a questionable way, throwing a glue gun she was holding and with a grimace saying “Why would you say something like that?”Kim Jin-kyung / Courtesy of InstagramKim, quickly realizing she shouldn’t have said that in the show being broadcasted live on smartphone video app Daum TV Pot, covered her mouth with her hand and tried to get back on the track, saying “I like CL very much.”But despite this, Kim was criticized by netizens for the mistake.“I may have made CL and some viewers uncomfortable with my rude gesture,” Kim said in her apology poAug 27, 2015
Park Yu-cheon of JYJ enters military today Park Yu-cheon of boy band JYJ began his military service Thursday.He will receive basic military training at Nonsan before serving two years in the reserve forces. His entertainment agency C-Jes Entertainment previously said that Park has asthma.Park and fellow JYJ member Kim Jun-su met with fans last week at the Olympic Gymnasium Stadium in Jamsil, Seoul.Their JYJ bandmate Kim Jae-joong entered the military for his mandatory term of service in March this year.All able-bodied South Korean men between the ages of 18 and 35 must serve in the military for about two years. Aug 27, 2015
Girls' Generation's 'Lion Heart' tops Billboard World Albums K-pop group Girls' Generation opened at No. 1 on Billboard's World Albums chart on Wednesday, the American music website showed.Its fifth album "Lion Heart" hit American retailers last Tuesday, local time, which gave the group only three days to climb the list, Billboard said.The 12-track album was released in a piecemeal fashion, with the first six songs coming out in South Korea last Tuesday at noon, local time, and the rest 12 hours later.This is the second time Girls' Generation has topped the World Albums chart, according to Billboard. With this chart-topper, the group joins six other K-pop acts that have sold the most World Music albums more than once, such as SHINee, EXO and G-Dragon.Music videos for the two title tracks ― "Lion Heart" and "You Think" ― were No. 1 and 2, respectively, on the top 20 K-pop music video chart on YouTube last week, S.M. Entertainment, its management agency, said. (Yonhap)Aug 26, 2015
SM, IB Worldwide ink deal to create 'sportainment' By Kwon Ji-younKorea’s top entertainment agency has formed a partnership with the country’s leading sports marketing company in a move intended to boost its profits by expanding into non-entertainment segments.SM Entertainment on Tuesday signed a mutual investment agreement with IB Worldwide, home to world No. 1 golfer Park In-bee, star gymnast Son Yeon-jae and major leaguer Choo Shin-soo.“This partnership will create the next trend in hallyu (Korean wave), which is sportainment, a combination of sports and entertainment,” SM Entertainment CEO Kim Young-min said.Industry insiders say the deal is meaningful in many ways.First, this reflects SM’s commitment to diversifying revenue streams by building partnerships with leaders in the non-entertainment segment.Other such efforts include SM’s plans to launch a global dining brand next month, its third attempt at a foray into the food and beverages market.YG PLUS, an affiliate of YG Entertainment, home to idols Big Bang and 2NE1, has already made inroads into sports marketing with its acquisition of G-ADAug 26, 2015
