Lee Oi-soo (이외수)

Meet 100 celebrities at Korea 100 Sparkles Online Festival

Source | 2009/09/24 | 0 comments | Permalink |

The Korea Tourism Organization (KTO, CEO Lee Charm) has launched the second phase of its global tourism promotion campaign, which promotes Visit Korea 2010-2012 and enhances Korea's image as a tourist destination.

The first phase, Korea's Bright Sparks, was launched in July 2009 with Yahoo!, and it was participated in by 800,000 netizens from China, Japan, Singapore, and Taiwan. During the campaign, Park Yong-Ha, Jun Jin, and 'Andy' were voted as the Korean Hallyu stars that Asia's netizens most wanted to meet.

Capitalizing on the momentum generated by this first phase, the KTO is now launching the second phase of the campaign, 100 Sparkling Stories. Through the KTO and Yahoo!'s campaign microsite (http://www.korea100sparkles.com), this phase promotes various attractions such as the Visit Korea Year event, Seven Luck Casino, Incheon, Gangwon-do Province, and Gyeongsangbuk-do Province, and also contains travel columns on attractions such as beauty services. On this microsite, 100 ...| More

Lee Oi-soo Chosen as Most Popular Novelist

Source | 2009/07/22 | 0 comments | Permalink |

By Han Sang-hee
Staff Reporter

Lee Oi-soo is Korea's favorite novelist, according to Gallup Korea.

A survey to celebrate the research firm's 35th anniversary saw 13.5 percent choose the 62-year-old Lee as their favorite, the company said Tuesday.

A total of 1,704 people, older than 13, participated in the survey.

Gallup Korea reported that Lee, who was named the fifth favorite in 2004, topped the list thanks to his best selling novels and essays, not to mention his effort to try to communicate with the younger generation via television and the Internet.

The second favorite was the late Park Kyung-ni, who wrote the famous "Land" ("Toji, the Land"), followed by Gong Ji-young, the writer who became popular with works such as "My Sweet Home", and recently "Dogani".

Yi Mun-yeol, who made No. 1 in 2004, finished in fourth place with 3.3. percent, while Hwang Seok-young followed with 2.3 percent.

"There were surprisingly a lot of people who didn't have an answer when as...| More

Koo Hye-seon Shows Versatile Talent on "Literature With A Voice"

2009/05/11 | 0 comments | Permalink |

Actress Koo Hye-seon, 25, who played a leading role in the TV drama "Boys Over Flowers", will display her versatile talent on the KBS TV1 show "Literature With A Voice", which will air May 12 at 11:30 p.m.

The production team says that during the recording of the show, the actress played the piano on a stage decorated with her own drawings. She also recited extracts from the novel "Haak Haak" by Lee Oi-soo, Koo's debut novel "Tango", which was published last month, and the essay "Then I Didn't Say Anything" by Chun Hye-rin.

The actress also spoke about her efforts to gain recognition for more than ten years and public misunderstanding that she rose to stardom solely because of her pretty looks. She also expressed gratitude to her parents for trusting her....| More

2008 Literature: Return of Korean Novels

Source | 2008/12/19 | 0 comments | Permalink |

By Chung Ah-young
Staff Reporter

This year, Korean literature has resurged, surpassing the popularity of the self-help and practical books, which usually sell well in economic slump.

According to Kyobo Bookstore, many novels dealing with family values and warm-hearted emotions garnered popularity.

"The contents of self-help books have become similar and overdone over the years. Instead, novels with human stories seem to be helping readers deal with their worries during these times", an official of the bookstore said.

Prolific productions by veteran and new Korean authors mark the return of novels and the resurrection of Korean literature despite sorrow over the deaths of two great authors.

Deaths of Great Authors

This year, the Korean literature scene lost the two master authors. Veteran novelist Park Kyung-ni, renowned for her masterpiece "Land" ("Toji, the Land"), died from lung cancer at the age of 82 on May 5.

Park, one of the most revered authors in Korea, wa...| More

Audi Picks Korea's Most Successful Men

Source | 2008/12/02 | 0 comments | Permalink |

From left mime Yoo Jin-kyu, actor Ha Jeong-woo, designer Jung Wook-jun, singer GDragon of Big Bang, baseball coach Kim Kyung-moon, movie director Kim Ji-woon, novelist Lee Oi-soo, and chief executive of the aA Design Museum Kim Myung-han, the eight recipients of the A-Awards for the most successful men of the year given by men's fashion magazine Arena and Audi Korea. The award ceremony will be held in Grand Hyatt Hotel in Seoul next Tuesday. /Courtesy of Audi Korea ...| More