Bae Yong-joon

Bae Yong-joon (Korean: 배용준; Hanja: 裵勇浚; born August 29, 1972) is a South Korean businessman and former actor. He has starred in numerous television dramas, including, notably, Winter Sonata which became a major part of the Korean Wave. Bae retired from acting after 2007, but remains active as the chairman of management agency KeyEast.

Bae Yong-joon
Waxwork of Bae Yong-joon
Born (1972-08-29) August 29, 1972
OccupationActor, businessman
Years active1994–2017
Spouse(s)Park Soo-jin (m. 2015)
Children2
Awards Hwagwan Order of Cultural Merit (2008)
Korean name
Hangul
배용준
Hanja
Revised RomanizationBae Yong-jun
McCune–ReischauerPae Yongjun
Websitehttp://www.byj.co.kr/

Early life

Bae Yong-joon was born in Mapo District, Seoul. He entered Sungkyunkwan University in 2000 as a Film Studies major.[1]

Career

Bae made his acting debut in 1994 in the Korean drama Salut D'Amour (lit. "Love Greeting").[2] The rookie actor quickly gained popularity, and a year later he won Best New Actor at the 1995 KBS Drama Awards for Our Sunny Days of Youth. Throughout the 1990s, Bae continued playing leading roles on television, in Papa (1996), First Love (1996) which reached a peak viewership rating of 65.8%, The Barefooted Youth (1998), and the Noh Hee-kyung-penned Did We Really Love? (1999). In Hotelier (2001), he played a mergers and acquisitions specialist about to takeover a hotel, but has a change of heart after falling in love with one of its employees (Bae would later reprise his role in a cameo in the 2007 Japanese remake of Hotelier).[3]

But it was Yoon Seok-ho's Winter Sonata in 2002 that would transform Bae's career, and consequently the face of Korean dramas abroad. A melodrama about first love, lost memory and unknown family ties, Winter Sonata became an unprecedented success in Asia and more than 20 countries, particularly in Japan. Bae gained a tremendous fan base among Japanese middle-aged women, who dubbed him with the honorific nickname Yon-sama (ヨン様; cf. "Emperor Yon") and brought in US$2.3 billion in tourism and Winter Sonata merchandise sales.[4][5][6][7][8]

In 2003, Bae was cast in his first major big-screen role in Untold Scandal (he had previously appeared in bit parts in two films in the 1990s).[2] In contrast to his gentle, intellectual image, Bae played a conniving, sexually predatory nobleman in E J-yong's adaptation of Les Liaisons dangereuses set in 18th century Joseon.[9] His performance received Best New Actor accolades from the Blue Dragon Film Awards and the Baeksang Arts Awards. He next published a photo book The Image: Volume 1 in 2004, which sold 100,00 copies.

Afterwards he worked with director Hur Jin-ho in April Snow (2005), about a stage lighting director who discovers his wife's infidelity when she becomes comatose after a near-fatal car accident with her lover.[10][11] The film had a weak domestic run but due to Bae's star power, it set a new box office record for a Korean film in Japan with ¥2.72 billion .[12][13][14][15]

Bae then entered the restaurant business, by establishing restaurants and cafes that capitalize on the well-being trend. He owns health food restaurant Gorilla in the Kitchen and high-end traditional Korean restaurant Gosire.[16][17][18][19] As the most famous Korean actor in Japan, he became a proponent for Korean cuisine, and his Gosire lunchboxes (or bento) are sold in Japanese convenience stores and supermarkets.[20] In 2006, Bae became one of Korea's wealthiest celebrities as the majority shareholder (34.6%) of management agency KeyEast (his stocks are valued at US$128 million as of May 2015).[21][22][23][24] Most of the KeyEast executives, including president Bae Sung-woong, are Bae's former managers and have worked with him for more than ten years.[16]

Bae made his much-anticipated return to television in 2007 in The Legend (also known as Taewangsasingi, lit. "The Four Guardian Gods of the King"). The big-budget period-fantasy epic was written by Song Ji-na and directed by Kim Jong-hak, and Bae played dual roles: Gwanggaeto, 19th ruler of the Goguryeo kingdom; and Hwanung, believed to be the son of God and founder of Gojoseon.[3][25][26] He was paid ₩250 million (US$217,000) per episode, making him the highest paid Korean television actor of all time.[27]

In 2009, Bae and Winter Sonata co-star Choi Ji-woo reunited as voice actors for the animated series Winter Sonata Anime, which aired in Japan.[28][29][30] He also wrote a book of photo-essays A Journey in Search of Korea's Beauty, which promoted Korean traditional culture such as ceramics, liquor, hanbok, pansori, hanok, Hangul, kimchi-making, temple stays, museums and historical sites.[31][32] It became a bestseller, and has been translated to Japanese, Taiwanese, Chinese and English.[33][34][35][36] A Journey in Search of Korea's Beauty was later turned into an eight-episode TV documentary that aired on MBC Life in 2011.[37][38]

In 2009 and 2010, he was the star of D3 Publisher's Nintendo DS edutainment series Bae Yong-joon to Manabu Kankokugo DS ("Learn Korean with Bae Yong-joon"), consisting of three games: Bae Yong-joon to Manabu Kankokugo DS (beginner level), Bae Yong-joon to Manabu Kankokugo DS Date Hen (intermediate level), and Bae Yong-joon to Manabu Kankokugo DS Test Hen (advanced level).[39][40][41]

Bae and KeyEast entered into a joint partnership with Park Jin-young and JYP Entertainment in 2009, which eventually produced Dream High (2011), a teen musical series that revolved around the lives of students attending a high school for the performing arts.[42][43][44] As creative producer, Bae supervised the screenplay and production; he also appeared in a four-episode guest arc.[45][46][47] The collaboration between KeyEast and JYPE, named Holym, lasted until 2013.

Personal life

He and actress Park Soo-jin announced their engagement in May 2015 and married on July 27, 2015 at the Sheraton Grande Walkerhill Hotel. The couple only invited friends and relatives to the wedding and forbade attendance of the press media.[48][49][50]

Filmography

Television series

Year Title Role Network
1994Salut D'AmourKim Young-minKBS2
1995Our Sunny Days of YouthHa Seok-jooKBS2
Drama Game
"Six Steps to Separation"
Kyung-minKBS2
Sea BreezeJang Moon-youngPSB
1996PapaChoi Hyun-joonKBS2
Colors "Blue"KBS2
First LoveSung Chan-wooKBS2
1997The Angel WithinMan in café (cameo)KBS2
1998The Barefooted YouthHan Yo-seok/Jang Yo-seokKBS2
1999Did We Really Love?Kang Jae-hoMBC
2001HotelierShin Dong-hyuk/Frank ShinMBC
2002Winter SonataKang Joon-sang/Lee Min-hyeongKBS2
2007HotelierShin Dong-hyuk (cameo, episode 1)TV Asahi
The LegendDamdeok/Hwan-woongMBC
2009Winter Sonata AnimeKang Joon-sang/Lee Min-hyeong (voice)SKY PerfecTV!
2011Dream HighJung Ha-myung (guest, episodes 1–4)KBS2

Films

Year Title Role Director
1994The Young Man(bit part)Bae Chang-ho
1997PpilKuShock member (bit part)You Jin-sun
2003Untold ScandalJo-wonE J-yong
2005April SnowIn-suHur Jin-ho

Music videos

Year Song Title Artist
2001"Goodbye, My Love"Jo Sung-mo
2002"Ditto and Sympathy 2"

Video games

Year Title Platform
January 25, 2007Pachinko Fuyu no Sonata Pachitte Chonmage Tatsujin 10 [51]PlayStation 2
December 25, 2008Pachinko Fuyu no Sonata 2 Pachitte Chonmage Tatsujin 15 [52]PlayStation 2
September 19, 2009Bae Yong-joon to Manabu Kankokugo DS (Learn Korean with Bae Yong-joon DS)[39][53]Nintendo DS
December 23, 2009Fuyu no Sonata DS [54]Nintendo DS
August 26, 2010Bae Yong-joon to Manabu Kankokugo DS Date Hen (Learn Korean with Bae Yong-joon DS Date Version)[40][55]Nintendo DS
August 26, 2010Bae Yong-joon to Manabu Kankokugo DS Test Hen (Learn Korean with Bae Yong-joon DS Test Version)[40][56]Nintendo DS

Books

Year Title Notes
2004The Image: Volume 1
2005100 Days of Bae Yong-joon
2007BYJ Family Book
2009Journey in Search of Korea's Beauty
2012Visit to Kyoto

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Nominated work Result
1995KBS Drama AwardsBest New ActorOur Sunny Days of YouthWon
Photogenic AwardWon
1996KBS Drama AwardsExcellence Award, actorFirst LoveWon
Popularity AwardWon
Photogenic AwardWon
Korean Model Center Best Dressed AwardsRecipientN/AWon
199733rd Baeksang Arts AwardsMost Popular Actor (TV)First LoveWon
Kyunghyang Shinmun Readers' Choice
Special Advertisement Awards
Readers' Favorite Advertisement ModelN/AWon
200238th Baeksang Arts AwardsMost Popular Actor (TV)Winter SonataWon
10th Korean Most Popular Entertainment AwardsBest Actor (TV)Won
KBS Drama AwardsTop Excellence Award, actorWon
Popularity AwardWon
200324th Blue Dragon Film AwardsBest New ActorUntold ScandalWon
Popular Star AwardWon
200440th Baeksang Arts AwardsBest New Actor (Film)Won
41st Grand Bell AwardsBest New ActorNominated
33rd Japan Men's Fashion AssociationBest Dressed of the Year, International categoryN/AWon
4th Proud Korean Awards
(Journalists Federation of Korea)
Recipient, Public Art categoryN/AWon
2007MBC Drama AwardsGrand Prize (Daesang)The LegendWon
Top Excellence Award, actorNominated
Popularity AwardWon
Best Couple Award with Lee Ji-ahWon
200844th Baeksang Arts AwardsBest Actor (TV)Nominated
2nd Korea Drama AwardsHallyu Achievement AwardWon
Order of Cultural Merit[57]
(Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism)
Recipient, Hwagam MedalN/AWon
20091st Korea Brand Image AwardsRecipient, Broadcasting categoryN/AWon
20101st Stars of Korean Tourism Awards
(Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism)
Achievement AwardN/AWon
201310th Anniversary of Korean
Entertainment in Japan Awards[58][59][60]
Grand Prize (Daesang)Winter SonataWon
Best ActorWon

See also

  • Contemporary culture of South Korea
  • Korean Wave

References

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  2. "Actors and Actresses of Korean Cinema: Bae Yong-joon". Koreanfilm.org. Archived from the original on May 21, 2015. Retrieved May 14, 2015.
  3. Brasor, Philip (January 27, 2008). "Bae Yong Joon, superstar, how many hits have you had so far?". Japan Times. Retrieved May 14, 2015.
  4. "Celebrity: A Hunk O' Love". Newsweek. May 2, 2004. Retrieved May 14, 2015.
  5. Norimitsu, Onishi (November 23, 2004). "What's Korean for 'Real Man?' Ask a Japanese Woman". The New York Times. Retrieved May 14, 2015.
  6. Sohn, Jie-ae (March 16, 2005). "S. Korean star sparks tourist boom". CNN. Retrieved May 14, 2015.
  7. "Bae Yong-joon Laments the Price of Fame". The Chosun Ilbo. May 24, 2006. Retrieved May 14, 2015.
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  9. Kim, Soo-kyung (March 16, 2003). "Bae Yong-joon's Screen Debut – Notorious Playboy from Chosun Dynasty". The Dong-a Ilbo. Retrieved May 14, 2015.
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  39. https://www.allkpop.com/article/2009/07/learn-korean-on-nintendo-ds-with-bae-yong-joon
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  51. https://www.jp.playstation.com/software/title/slps25665.html
  52. https://www.jp.playstation.com/software/title/slps25907.html
  53. https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ds/software/b43j/
  54. https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ds/software/vfuj/
  55. https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ds/software/byjj/index.html
  56. https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ds/software/bykj/index.html
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