Jo Hyun Jae

I am what I am.

I am what I am — this is what you said, Jo Hyun-Jae. I say, you are really what you are. There will never be another one like you in this world. You are the JHJ in our hearts.

Last year about this time I was very glad to get to know you through your character Jang (Seo Dong) which made me so happy and nostalgic.

Why do people have to go on living? You said: “We all know we have to die sooner or later, but we still try our best to survive. If we cannot enjoy the present, there is no reason to go on living, right?”

Riding the bicycle in the countryside, breathing the fresh air, letting oneself go, isn’t this happiness? Human beings need hope to go on living. When you faced hardships in life, you were so strong, like a roc (鹏 – large fabled bird) spreading its wings, facing life as it comes.

Through you, I can see the joy of life.

Through you, I can see living is a kind of strength.

Through you, I can see the meaning of struggle.

Think about it, in this “vanity fair” (frivolous society), it is not easy to have a pure corner in one’s heart. To some people the end justifies the means, but they forget they should tread on solid ground. You show us with your actions that it takes hard work to attain your goals.

You have been in the entertainment field for seven years*, and you have chosen a career in performance. You have always tried to do your best. We can all see your efforts.

I remember that high school photo of yours — without a smile on your face, but that defiant look, that refusal to bow to reality — it is always in my mind. You must have been so exhausted trying to make a living, but you willingly shouldered this burden.

Seems like you are the Kwon In-Ho of “Untold Scandal”, in flowing white, standing in front of Lady Cho’s gate, basking in the summer sun. When you see So-Oak, your heart beats like thunder and you feel like drowning in her words. That poor girl must have been so disconcerted when you stare at her like that.

Seems like in “Father and Sons”, that summer, that young man carrying the girl on his back, running to the hospital. But he cannot comfort her, so he can only cry uncontrollably in front of his mother.

Seems like you are in “Love Letter” — that winter when you and Eun-Ha are riding the bicycle and fooling around on the snow, so happy, your smile like the warm sun in winter, warming our hearts.

So many faces of JHJ, flitting across my brains like a movie — this is memory, remembering those scenes in which you exist.

I will not forget your glowing smile in “Forbidden Love”, but you are most handsome when you are practising with the sword in your black costume.

I will not forget you in “Sunshine” when you shed painful tears because of the departure of your loved one.

I will not forget the beautiful music you create in “Star’s Echo”.

I will not forget your intransigence in love in “Only You”.

And of course I will not forget you in “Seo Dong Yo” — your prince’s sufferings will lead to blessings.

You have just turned 28* — the mature you that appears in magazines lets us see a different you.

What a pleasant surprise! You will be coming to China in the near future.** We are so, so happy. But you must have been a little worried about that movie [Editor: "G.P.506"] which will be your comeback work [Editor: after a long absence.] However, we believe you will accept these uncertainties with optimism and face them with firmness, because you have said: “I am what I am.”

A different you brings us a different kind of moving experience. We firmly believe you will go far on the entertainment road, until you reach your chosen target.

(Article written by cuinanana@ING. johyunjae.cn. Thanks!)
* From these references it is obvious this article was written sometime in May or June 2007. A little dated, but the sentiment is timeless.
** The reference is to JHJ’s visit to China in July 2007 to model for Andre Kim at his Fashion Extravaganza.

This MV presents the many faces of JHJ — all beautiful!

(Credit: 3.1 of CarpeDiemJAPAN.  Thanks!)

PTTS = Post-Traumatic Trip Syndrome (that’s a term I just coined.)

No, I’m not suffering from anything; just gives me an excuse to publish a post.

Last week M and I went on a buying trip to Osaka, Japan and came back with good news.  First, we managed to get all the JHJ souvenirs that our readers wanted: Japan Fan Meeting DVD, Korea Fan Meeting DVD, photo album, CD, clear files.  With super-efficiency, we mailed these to our “customers” the morning after our return.

We also paid for the 2010 JHJ calendar for all those fans who ordered it.  In this way we saved on bank remittance fees which could be quite high (and which we would have to pass on to our “customers” otherwise.)  But what about the cost of our trip (plane ticket, hotel, etc.) ?  Never mind, anything for JHJ!  Anyway, our in-house accountant approves (Guess who?)

Now this 2010 desk calendar will not be ready till the second half of November.  By the time it reaches us (by ordinary Air Mail because EMS would add considerably to the price) and through us to you, it would make a delightful Christmas present.  I still remember the excitement the 2009 calendar generated.  Watching JHJ every day makes the countdown (of his discharge from the army) easier and faster (sort of.)

The 2009 calendar came in two sizes — wall calendar and desk calendar.  The desk calendar sold out very quickly.  The wall calendar is absolutely stunning: the photos are in antique colour (faded brown) and every page is a work of art!  The paper quality is superior; they would make excellent posters.  But some fans (on other websites) complained they had no place to hang it, and others said the desk calendar could be hidden (from their husbands) but not the wall calendar (which is 24 X 18 1/2 inches.)   Well, if a woman has to hide things from her husband, there is obviously something wrong with the marriage.  My calendars are in full view for all to see.

Now there are still some 2009 wall calendars left, currently selling at 2100 yen (20% discount from original price.)  We suggested if it is half price, perhaps some fans would buy it as posters.  But we are such lousy businesswomen that we probably shouldn’t make any business propositions.  We were so afraid of overcharging our “customers” that in most cases we under-estimated the postage (the difference of which we absorbed.)  Never mind, anything for JHJ!

Since we made a special trip to Osaka, of course we had to do a little investigative reporting.  We are very happy to discover that Star N Hit is not such a small company after all.  At the very top is SIDUS which is head and shoulder above the rest.  SNH is sort of second/third tier, along with a host of others.  They have a number of actresses under their management, but only one male superstar, and that is of course our JHJ.  Let’s hope they know how to use their resources to promote JHJ.  Mr. Lee Sang Hoon is the “boss” of SNH, so he is the one calling the shots.  Have you mailed your letter to him yet?  We have.

We were asked about JHJ fans in other parts of the world (i.e. outside of Korea and Japan.)  We’re happy to be able to report that JHJ is really very popular in North America (Canada and U.S.A., even Hawaii!), Europe (as diverse as Austria and Portugal!), Asia (particularly China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong), and South-East Asia (practically all countries.)  This is from the e-mails we received and comments left on our blog.  Some fans are too shy to leave comments, so they write to us instead.  We made it clear that many fans exist outside the system, i.e. they are not members of the Official JHJ Fan Club or CAFE or EVER, but they are no less devoted to JHJ.  These are the “invisible” fans that have been ignored or neglected.  I remember before we found a way, we were frantic about where to get JHJ souvenirs.  That is why we now do our best to help other fans.

Plans are already underway to “welcome” JHJ out of the army in June 2010.  We guess before he throws himself into his first drama/movie, JHJ will hold fan meetings in Korea and Japan (multiple locations), of course.  Whether there will be other overseas fan meetings depends on the demand.  Are his fans still there for JHJ, say, in Thailand (where he went in July 2008)?  Are there enough avid fans in the Philippines, for example, to make it worth his while?  JHJ has many fans in China, but can they all travel to one city to attend his fan meeting?  If we were agents (and we’re not!) we’d be pro-active and approach Star N Hit to host a fan meeting (provided we’ve done market research and concluded the project is viable.)

We are planning to attend JHJ fan meetings next year, whenever and wherever they are held.  If you would like to experience the thrill of a close encounter with JHJ, you should be saving your leave (and, of course, your money too.)

(Photos courtesy of http://jo-hyunjae.com.  On left, 2009 calendar cover — JHJ bares half of his body.  On right, 2010 calendar cover — JHJ hides half of his face.)

The following is an interview in the Japanese Magazine Kanpooh (Sept. 2006)) — Special Edition on Korean actors.

Jo Hyun-Jae, who rose to fame in “Untold Scandal” and “Love Letter” and gained a wide following in Japan, talks about his work and his views on women.

Q. Is there any actor who is a role model for you?

A. No one actor in particular.  But I hope my performance would qualify me to be considered a serious actor.  This is the most important thing to me at the moment.

Q. Some reports say you respect Lee Byung-Hyun a lot.

A. Yes, I like him very much.

Q. What is it about him that you like?

A.  I especially admire his superb acting skills.

Q. How many times have you been to Japan?  What is your impression of Japan?

A. This is my 6th visit.  Japan impresses me as a very beautiful country.  And everybody has fine sense of trends.

Q.  What do you plan to do this time?

A.  This time I’d like more time to rest, but there are so many interviews I don’t have time to go out.  Still, I bought some clothes in Shibuya; they’re now at the hotel.

Q. How do you spend your leisure time?

A. Recently I like driving around, also hiking.  Before I used to like swimming and roller skating.  Now I jog quite a lot.

Q. Are there any Japanese actresses that you particularly like?

A.  Not really.  I only remember Miho Nakayama ( 中山美穗 ) in “Love Letter”. (Editor: the 1995 Japanese movie “Love Letter”)

Q. Would you like to break into the Japanese entertainment scene?

A. Of course, if the opportunity arises.  I have just finished filming the historical drama “Seo Dong Yo”; next I would like to do a contemporary drama.

Q. Are you good at love scenes?

A. Yes. (Laughs.)

Q. What kind of women do you like?

A. Women who have cheerful disposition, those whom you’re comfortable with when you see them.

And then when JHJ was asked to give an example from the actresses that he has worked with, he smiled shyly and said there’s no one actress that he could name as an example. 

 Q. Which one of your dramas left the deepest impression?

A. “Love Letter” — this is the first drama in which I had a starring role, the first time I threw myself completely into a role.  Because this was the first time I played lead, I felt absolutely remarkable.  I also learnt a lot from this experience.

Q. You mostly play pure, respectful characters.  Are you like that too?

A.  I’ve played a lot of good characters.  I try to learn from them in playing the roles.

Q. In “Untold Scandal” and “Love Letter”, you play opposite Lee Mi-Sook and Soo-Ai respectively.  Do you get along better with the older actresses or the younger ones?

A. This has nothing to do with age.  I pay more attention to communication.  Thank you.

(Translated from the Chinese version on www.johyunae.hk.  Thank you, Scarecrow and Bigcat!)

 (Credit: Photos from www.kanpooh.com) 

The two videos are identical: the first is YOUTUBE and the second TUDOU.  If you can see YOUTUBE, fine, but if you are in a country where YOUTUBE is blocked, then watch the second video.

Every time I see Jo Hyun-Jae as the Crown Prince in “Great Ambition” (Dae Mang 2002), I marvel at the fact that this is his first “real” role in a drama.  He does not at all look like a newbie on the set.  Every appearance is a miracle, especially when he is wearing his regal robes.  The final smile is so sweet, so serene!

(Credit: Video from Cafe.daum.net/ilovejhzz.  Photo from CarpeDiemJAPAN. Thanks!)