Jo Hyun Jae

Jo Hyun-Jae’s old dramas are being shown over and over again in different parts of the world.

3 Dads/1 Mom — on Japan’s KBS World (from November 1, 2010)

Only You — on Japan’s food channel FOODIESTV (from October 6)

Great Ambition (Dae Mang) — on Taiwan’s GTV (from October 2) 

Eric (left) and Jo Hyun-Jae 

This news just out!

From http://sports.chosun.com (10:19 a.m.) and http://isplus.joins.com (09:25 a.m.)

Verdi Media, the production company responsible for the re-make of the 1996 Hong Kong movie “Comrades, almost a love story” (tian mi mi), the Korean version re-titled “Love Song”, has just announced that Jo Hyun-Jae and Eric are in serious discussions to replace Park Yong-Ha whose untimely death in June upset the original plans.

Casting is not 100% confirmed but on-going talks are “positive”.

From: Star News http://star.int.co.kr (11:09 a.m.)

Jumpstart to the shelved “Love Song” has hit a snag with Eric declining the role and Jo Hyun-Jae “reserving his options.”  According to JHJ’s management company SNH’s Mr. Lee Sang Hoon, JHJ is considering a lot of scripts and has not made up his mind.

From: http://www.cnews.co.kr (11:32 a.m.)

Essentially same as first news item above.  Listed “Love Song” as a KBS drama.  No mention of Eric declining the offer; JHJ is said to be “considering” this as his comeback project.

Well, these are the latest news that we found on the internet and they contradict one another — within minutes.  What are we to believe?  Guess we have to wait for SNH’s formal announcement.

The waiting continues…..

This is the latest:

From: http://cn.joins.com/big5 (16:51 p.m.)

Jo Hyun-Jae and Eric have both agreed to star in “Love Song”, the drama that was temporarily shelved because of the death of Park Yong-Ha in June.  JHJ who was discharged on June 19 and Eric who will be discharged on Oct.22 have both chosen “Love Song” as their comeback project after their military service.

Production plans were put on hold after Park Yong-Ha’s death, but it looks like the project will soon be revived with JHJ and Eric coming on board.

Well, this news appeared later than all the others and it sounded very definite.  But who knows?  As long as we haven’t heard it from the horse’s mouth, we’re not holding our breath.

When news reports conflict, it usually means the truth is still out there somewhere.  We hope JHJ will take his time and not let all the pressure (including from fans) get to him.  We trust he will exercise his judgement and follow his instincts to choose something he really likes.  Whatever he likes, we like. 

(Note: Time is Korean time – one hour ahead of us.)

Check out JHJ’s shoes!

This article is inspired by a recent MV I saw on johyunjae.hk by a diehard JHJ fan KK, set to a song by the famous Hong Kong singer Jacky Cheung called 我等到花兒也謝了 (translates as: I waited till even the flowers have wilted.)  Listening to the plaintive melody made my heart all knotted up.

We do not want to post the MV here because she uses all the “Welcome to XX and XXX” banners and posters that were prepared but never used for a visit that never materialized.  We have also prepared those which are now in our archives, never to see the light of day.

More than a month has passed since the non-event, but apparently quite a lot of fans are still seething.  We are not exaggerating when we say JHJ has lost some fans because of what happened, or rather, what didn’t happen.  It is not really JHJ’s fault, but his MC handled the situation so unprofessionally that those fans who were affected never forgave them for it.

Many even openly questioned if the MC would do this to Japanese fans – if this had happened in Japan.  The answer is: ”Of course not! ”  Now the most effective way to make people forget something bad is to give them something good.  The MC practically promised in their September 15 message that an announcement on JHJ’s new work would be made “after Chuseok”.

It’s now early October and nothing is forthcoming.  In the September 22 post “Chuseok”, we wrote: “But what is ‘after Chuseok’?  September 24 is ‘after Chuseok’, but so are October 1, November 10, or even December 25!”  We hate to be a prophet in this case, but two of those dates have come and gone.

Summer is over too – the flowers have all wilted.  Like KK, we’ve waited till all the flowers have wilted.  JHJ fans specialize in waiting.  We have waited for two years – while he was in the army.  What is another two months?  We had the Japan fan meetings in August - great!  What is another two more months?  OK, now it’s October.

We all want JHJ to take his time to choose the best comeback work.  We are not trying to rush him.  We know there are many things beyond his control.  We realize in this world, it’s “you choose me, I choose you.”  Every actor wants to star in the best role, and every production company wants the best actor for their drama.  It is up to the actor’s management company (MC) to secure the best role for him.

But in the meantime, while we are all waiting, could the MC not do something to entertain his fans?  If they do not (or worse, will not), they are not worth their salt.  How difficult is it to release some new photos of JHJ on the official websites?  How hard is it to write a little something on what JHJ is up to in the 1 1/2 months (gosh! how time flies!) since the Japan fan meetings?

If we can publish something every day on this blog (with no news, no new material, no new photos), why can’t they (with all their resources) do something for JHJ fans?  Absent any contribution from official sources, can they blame us for wondering if he has gone to Pusan with his “friend”?  She’s on vacation there with “friends” and we immediately wish her “friend” is our “friend”.  Pathetic, huh?

The autumn leaves drift by my window.  Soon the first snow will fall.  We’re still waiting…..

(Credit: Photos from http://jo-hyunjae.com.  Thanks!)

The WINNER is prissymom!  After you have read her story below, you will agree she deserves every accolade.

Craziest JHJ-drama-watching-experience

The first time I watched “Seo Dong Yo” was in 2008, two years after it ended its initial run on Korean TV in 2006. If memory serves me right, it is the last JHJ drama I watched. Saving the best for last? Nope! Actually, I didn’t want to watch it. I felt daunted by its length – 55 episodes! Too long; I have a very short attention span when it comes to dramas. Besides, it is a historical drama, Korean at that! What do I care about Korean history, right? But the prospect of two years without a new JHJ drama eventually moved me to give it a try. And so began my craziest JHJ-drama-watching-experience ever!

I remember that it was around 10 p.m. when I started to download the first episode. Right after downloading the 1st episode, I watched it. Right from the first hoof beat I was hooked. I stopped watching the 1st episode only long enough to start downloading the 2nd episode so that by the time I finished watching the 1st episode the 2nd episode would have finished downloading already. And so on and so forth. I kept downloading, and watching, then downloading again and watching again. To this day I cannot remember how many episodes I downloaded and watched that first night. All I can recall is that I became aware of time again only when my husband went to the guest room (where I was watching SDY on my laptop so as not to disturb him) to ask me what’s for breakfast.

Eeekkkk! It is the next day already! Where did the night go? I was so engrossed in watching SDY one episode after another that I didn’t notice time passing by. I rushed through my morning activities: cooked breakfast, ate breakfast with dear hubby, kissed and rushed him off to work (that dear, dear man, very cooperative!), then dumped the dishes in the kitchen sink (5555!). Started downloading SDY episodes again, this time multiple episodes in one go. And as the episodes were downloading, I rushed through other chores – washed the dishes, fixed the bed, took a bath. Then I went back to watching SDY.

Nothing else got done that day. I didn’t cook lunch; I just ate bread with some leftover viands. I munched fruits, raisins and biscuits whenever I would feel hunger pangs. I felt dizzy the whole day: from lack of sleep, too much watching and, most probably, from hunger too, but I watched on! The cliffhangers at the end of each episode were so good, I just couldn’t stop watching!

Time flew by so fast, morning turned to afternoon to ….yikes…. evening. Had to cook dinner! But wait, hubby texted – will be late home, have dinner meeting (I really love that man, very supportive of my interests 555!) I didn’t have to cook dinner! Woot-woo! Raided the ref for fruits (again) and the pantry for junk food (again)! I was still at it when hubby arrived home (late). Alas, the mind was willing, but the flesh was weak. I finally succumbed to sleep that second night: I had no choice, my eyes kept closing by themselves.

The succeeding days were more or less the same: downloaded SDY episodes, watched them, rushed through household stuff, missed a lot of meals. A lot of calls and text messages went unanswered too. I did answer some of those calls, but would feign sickness whenever I got an invitation for lunch or dinner out. I didn’t exactly lie, I was really feeling sick from lack of sleep, exercise and healthy food. But what could I do? SDY and JHJ are addicting.

But there were some invitations/trips I couldn’t weasel my way out. On those occasions I had to go out, I made sure to download as many episodes as I could, then saved them on my laptop. And then while my husband was driving to wherever we were going, I would watch SDY on my laptop. The longer the drive, the better. If we got stuck in traffic, even better (haha)! If we had to wait for whomever upon reaching our destination, betterer (is there such a word?)!!!

And here’s another trick I learned: whenever I feel really sleepy (to the point I can’t keep my eyes open anymore) but don’t want to stop watching yet (I have to finish the episode, right?), I would close one eye, let’s say the right eye, and continue watching with only the left eye! And when the left eye gets tired, I will close it (to give it a rest) and watch with the right eye. Left eye, then right eye again, on and on, until I finish the episode. My eyesight was already bad before SDY; it became worse after SDY.

I really can’t recall how long that period lasted; I would like to think that it lasted only for a week. But it could be 2 weeks… or 3 weeks… or a month! The days just blurred onto one another, marked only by the beginning and ending of SDY. Will I do it again when JHJ’s comeback project airs? What? Do you think I’m crazy? Of course, I will do it again! I am a diehard JHJ fan, after all.

HONOURABLE MENTION – Jelly

After I became a fan of Jo Hyun Jae, I wanted to learn more of Korea, its customs and traditions. Plus I wanted to taste kimchi even though I do not like spicy food. BUT the most embarrassing and crazy thing I have to admit is — when I went to Universal Studios recently, everytime I would meet a chinky- eyed guy, I would look hard at him hoping he would be JHJ!!!

I am crazy, huh???

Well, JHJ seems to be driving his fans crazy!  And yet he is so calm and serene himself.  It’s good to have some passion in your life, so carry on with your ardent love affair with JHJ.

We thank everyone for participating.  Congratulations to the winners!  Your prize will be on its way to you next week.

Jo Hyun-Jae’s movie career was launched on October 2, 2003 with the release of ”Untold Scandal” in which he had a supporting role.  (Please see our posts under Category: JHJ movie “Untold Scandal”.)

Seven years on, JHJ is no longer the very young and naive scholar that he plays in “Untold Scandal” but a real man who has served his country and is now poised on the eve of the renaissance of his acting career.

 (Credit: ahiru and param of CarpeDiemJAPAN.  Thanks!)

We advertised this a while back, so long ago we can’t recall offhand when.  We were meaning to go but circumstances now do not allow that.  So we’ll just share some information and pictures with you.

The ‘2010 Great Baekje World Festival’ (Sep.18 – Oct.17) is a major cultural celebration highlighting the history and culture of the Baekje Kingdom, a proud dynasty that lasted 678 years from 18 BC to 660 AD. Held for the last 55 years under the title ‘The Baekje Cultural Festival,’ the ‘Great Baekje World Festival’ will be adding a number of new and exciting programs to its program lineup.

This year, the festival will run under the theme ‘The Resurrection of Baekje from 1,400 Years Ago’ and will feature 22 major programs and a number of smaller side events. Major programs include water performances titled ‘Sabi Mirr’ and the ‘Tale of Sama.’ Other events include the parade of the mounted soldiers of Great Baekje, a reenactment of the Battle of Hwangsan Field, and the wedding of King Mu (?-641 AD) and Princess Seonhwa.

The festival grounds (Baekje Cultural Land) span an area of 3.3 million㎡ and are designed to give visitors a real life look at the lifestyle and culture of the people of Baekje. Numerous hands-on programs will be available, including ‘A Day in Sabigung Palace’ and ‘Experience: Immerse Yourself in Baekje Culture.’ In addition, the festival features creative madang plays, performances by overseas performance troupes, and folk culture programs representative of the 16 cities and counties of Chungcheongnam-do Province.

Baekje cultural land (Buyeo)

Baekje history and culture center

Aquatic performances: “The Tale of Sama” and “Sabi Mirr”

Exhibitions and academic events

Performances and parade

Permanent programs

There is also an excellent video (in English) on the official website.  At any moment I almost expect King Mu AKA JHJ to appear on the screen!  Check it out for yourselves at the site listed below.

(Credit: Information and photos from the Official site of Great Baekje World Festival www.baekje.org [Korean, English, Japanese, Chinese.]  Many thanks!)

First, please read our August 21 post “I spread my dream in the sky” under Category: JHJ fan meetings (if you haven’t done so before.)

You may remember my travel companion B and I had the good fortune to be on the same flight as Jo Hyun-Jae from Osaka to Tokyo on the night of August 21 — entirely by coincidence!

But I was so put off by JHJ’s handlers’ “No photo! No photo!” that I did not even get a decent shot of him (just one of his back.)

All the photos that have appeared on the internet are as blurred as mine.  Everybody has been asking why there are no good photos of the Japan fan meetings (except from the professionals).  The answer of course is the MC’s inefficiency and over-protectiveness.  They do not seem to realize a good photo of JHJ will do wonders for his image.  An artist needs exposure — not to be kept under wraps!

Anyway, as it turned out, one enterprising Japanese fan actually managed to take a video of JHJ’s arrival at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport.  This video has only now surfaced, so we’re sharing it with you here.

This video is a little shaky, but it is a miracle the Japanese fan managed to record so much.  I take my hat off to her!  Many thanks, yuuumi!

This is the love letter one of Jo Hyun-Jae’s Japanese fans tyanngumu sent to him that was read out at the Tokyo fan meeting on August 22.  She posted it on EVER’s Japanese section on September 24.  We find it strangely moving.  

As I was watching, I kept thinking: “I’d like to answer all those love letters to JHJ.”  He probably won’t have the time or the inclination to do so.  And then I saw the above “love letter” from that Japanese fan which I’d like to share with you.

(Credit: Original in Japanese on EVERjohyunjae.co.kr. - English translation by wulijohyunjae; photo by ahiru of CarpeDiemJAPAN.  Thanks!)

(Credit: 1st one by ahiru of CarpeDiemJAPAN, 2nd and 3rd by Coffee of johyunjae.hk.  Thanks!)