Minimix 27

• Jung Hyung Don and girlfriend Han Yu Ra have set a wedding date! After formally introducing their families on June 9, they have set September 12 as their wedding date although the venue has yet to be decided. The two met last year while working together on the SBS show Mystery Commando – he as a host and she as a scriptwriter. (She currently writes for MBC’s 오늘 밤만 재워줘 – loosely translated as Let Me Stay Over Tonight.) Although they began dating around October of 2008, the relationship was not publicized until this past April. Two of Jung’s Infinity Challenge co-hosts – Jung Joon Ha and Noh Hong Chul – also revealed their relationships this year.
  

  Jung Hyung Don and Han Yu Ra

• After a year and two months, Tablo is stepping down from being the DJ of Tablo’s Dream Station on MBC FM4U. There were various reasons cited – including increasing activities abroad and preparation for their sixth album as well as a remix album. June 13 will be his last broadcast.
  

  Tablo (from his blog on http://www.mapthesoul.com)

• Hit weekend drama, Brilliant Legacy, has been extended by two episodes (to a total of 28) due to high ratings. Discussion continues over extending it further to 30 episodes, but has yet to be approved.
  In related news, the show’s male lead, Lee Seung Gi (Sunwoo Hwan), distributed gifts to the entire staff of approximately 70 people. He gave each crew member a sweater, t-shirt, and handwritten letter to express his gratitude for their hard work. It reportedly took him about a week to write all of the personalized letters in between filming for Brilliant Legacy and Two Days and One Night.
  

  Brilliant Legacy - poster

• JYP Entertainment opened up an official English-language website for the Wonder Girls as their fame rises in America. In a hugely successful move for the group, the girls – Yenny “the go-getter”, Mimi “the daydreamer”, Sun “the perfectionist”, Sohee “the chic”, and Yubin “the swagger” – are touring with the Jonas Brothers for the entire summer. (KP’s note: Many Korean articles are referring to the Jonas Brothers as “America’s Big Bang” – in your opinion – true or false?)
  

  Wonder Girls

  In related news, the Wonder Girls are in China for a couple of days along with the cast of Two Days and One Night (1N2D / 1박 2일) to film a segment for the show before heading to the U.S.

• Hyun Young will begin studying at Korea University’s Graduate School of Journalism & Mass Communication this coming September. At age 32, Hyun Young stated that she is eager to study seriously since she is starting later than most. She will become schoolmates with actresses Lee In Hea (Iron Empress) and Kim A Joong (The Accidental Couple).
  

  Hyun Young

• Hallyu star Lee Young Ae (Sympathy for Lady Vengeance) was accepted into Hanyang University’s doctorate program for Theater & Cinema after submitting documents and passing an interview. Although she did not do a written test, a representative from Hanyang stated that Lee received no special consideration and was accepted on the same standard as all other doctorate students. After registering in July, she will begin her studies on September 1. Lee previously studied German at Hanyang for her undergraduate degree and attended Chung-Ang for her Master’s in theatre.
  

  Lee Young Ae

• Lee Kyung Kyu and Eun Ji Won join Kim Gu Ra and Moon Hee Jun as hosts on SBS variety program, Intimate Note (절친노트). The program will undergo some changes and be called Intimate Note 2 beginning June 19. Rather than inviting guests who are uncomfortable with each other to resolve their problems on the show (previous guests include Sohee-Yoobin, Seung Ri-Dae Sung, and Kangin-Sungmin), the second season will invite celebrity best friends to show viewers what true friendship is like. Close friends Kim Je Dong, Yoon Do Hyun, Kim Jang Hoon, and Bae Chil Soo will be Intimate Note 2‘s first featured guests.
  

  Intimate Note 2 hosts

Minimix 25

He said, she said:

• 2ne1 was the featured guest on June 2’s broadcast of Park Kyung Rim’s Starry Night radio show. Members revealed that their group name was decided upon only a few hours ahead of their debut. Other names they had considered were Tsunami, Cool Chicks, YG Girls, and Yangssa’s Kids.
  

  2ne1

• Actress Han Ga In appeared on SBS 생방송 한밤의 TV연예 and told how pleased her husband, actor Yeon Jung Hoon, was while telling her that she was voted as the #1 ‘Female Celebrity Off the Market”. Continuing on, she said, “I wish Yeon Jung Hoon was chosen as the #1 ‘Male Celebrity Off the Market’. In my opinion, he completely is…Next time, I hope that we’ll be chosen [together].” Regarding domestic life and household work, Han said that she’s good at cleaning and organizing. She has also been working on her cooking skills. “My husband especially likes the fried rice that I make for him. Yeon Jung Hoon doesn’t like vegetables so I have to secretly put in vegetables like eggplant into food as one would do to children in order for him to enjoy eating [the vegetables],” she revealed. Although Han watched each and every episode of East of Eden (which was Yeon’s first post-military project), she flips the channel when he has sentimental scenes with female co-stars because “at that moment he seems like a different person when he’s actually my husband”.
  

  Han Ga In

• Harisu opened a club last month in Apgujeong-dong to provide a fun, safe atmosphere for transgendered people such as herself. Korea’s most famous transgender wrote on her minihompy, “There were heartbreaking incidents of friends and juniors committing suicide in 2008. I in the midst of trying to create a lovely environment for people like us who experience the same pain and alienation.”
  
  

  Harisu's Mix-Trans Club

• On June 3’s broadcast of Golden Fishery – Radio Star, Tablo expressed confidence in his relationship saying, “I am positive that [Kang Hye Jung] is the love of my life.”
  

  Kang Hye Jung, Tablo

  KP’s note: I guess Kang Hye Jung’s English name is April?

Minimix 12

• Actor Ji Sung (New Heart) has been spending nine hours a day for the preparation of his leading role as Kim Jung Woo in the SBS drama, Swallow the Sun. For the past four months, he has been training in scuba diving, weight training, taekwondo, boxing, and security patrol. He also bought a motorcycle in order to practice riding for the role.
  Ji Sung left for Johannesburg, South Africa with the cast and crew on March 26 to film in temperatures over 34 degrees Celsius. They will then relocate to Las Vegas, U.S.A. for further overseas filming. Swallow the Sun, commonly referred to as All In 2, will be broadcast starting July of this year.
  

  Swallow the Sun - Ji Sung on set

• Solbi, Seung Ri, and Dae Sung have stepped down from their hosting duties on MBC Show! Music Core. The March 28 broadcast was their last since debuting on the program in May of 2008. Tiffany and Yuri of Girls’ Generation (SNSD) will take over as Music Core hosts on April 4.
  

  Music Core - ex-hosts

  

  Music Core - new hosts

• YG Entertainment has announced that Big Bang will not take on any activities this coming May. For the first time since their debut in 2006, the group’s members will have an entire month off for refreshment (as opposed to rest). Although the group as a whole will be on break, each member will still likely be busy. Dae Sung will continue his participation in Family Outing and T.O.P will be filming for IRIS. G-Dragon plans to spend a month travelling in Europe to explore fashion trends. Tae Yang and Seung Ri are scheduled to receive training from famous dancers and choreographers in America. Big Bang will then reunite to spend June and July in Japan, focusing on work again.

• SNSD’s Yuri shed tears in K.Will’s music video for the title song (“눈물이 뚝뚝”) of his new mini-album. Although this was her first time in a crying scene, Yuri said that tears flowed automatically as she heard the song. K.Will’s album, which was released on March 31, also includes the duet he recorded with Tiffany – “Girl, Meets Love”.
  

  "눈물이 뚝뚝" MV - Yuri

• Actor Ju Ji Hun and director Min Kyu Dong attended the Tokyo premiere of their movie, Antique, on March 30. Ju apologized to the crowd that the three other leads (Kim Jae Wook, Yoo Ah In, Choi Ji Ho) could not make it. The movie is based on Fumi Yoshinaga’s Japanese manga, Antique Bakery, which depicts the lives of four male employees at a bakery.
  

  Antique - Tokyo premiere

• On March 28, the Wonder Girls held their first full concert in Korea. ‘The 1st Wonder’ was a success with 8000 people (including their close friend, Park Tae Hwan) in attendance at the Olympic Fencing Arena. In addition to singing many of their hits, each member also performed a solo portion – Ye Eun, the famous “Killing Me Softly”; Sunye, “Ilwoljiga / Sun and Moon” (“일월지가”); Sohee, Beyonce’s “Single Ladies”; Sun Mi, “Invitation”; and Yubin, Justin Timberlake’s “SexyBack”. Special guests 2AM performed their second single, “A Friend’s Confession”.
  

  'The 1st Wonder' - Wonder Girls

  KP’s note: Oh my goodness. The Wonder Girls use(d) Twitter. Click here for their MySpace site, which provides links.

• Tablo’s response to a journalist asking, “Which person symbolizes people in their twenties?”:

Umm, Big Bang? […] It’s a sincere answer. Big Bang is like the twentysomething generation. Out of them, Dae Sung is most like [it]. He’s not completely grown up yet, but he tries this and that without fear, and it’s good to see him enjoying himself whether he wants to something or not. Those in their twenties by nature don’t really know what their doing.

Minimix 9

• Korea’s top MCs, Kang Ho Dong and Yoo Jae Suk, now belong to the same entertainment agency upon the merger between DY Entertainment and The Chocolate ENTF. The Chocolate’s clients such as Ko Hyun Jung, Yoon Jong Shin, and Kim Tae Woo join Noh Hong Chul, Shin Dong Yup, Lee Hyuk Jae, amongst others under the name DY Entertainment.
• Kang Hye Jung showed off her surprise White Day present from boyfriend Tablo during filming for a television show. The shoes indicate that they have been dating since January 14, as he wrote “Since 0114 ~ FOREVER”. The episode of SBS Good Morning – Plus One will be broadcast on March 19. Kang was featured on the show to share her make-up and hairstyle tips with viewers. In other Tablo-related news, Epik High tweeted that they have uploaded their official track list. Their website will open officially on March 21.
  

  

  Kang Hye Jung's gift from Tablo

• Kim Won Hee will be the first MC – as opposed to actor or singer – to be invited as a guest on SBS Family Outing (패밀리가 떴다). She will join the cast and crew overnight on March 23 to film for the episodes to be broadcast on April 5 and 12. Viewers can expect her to fit right in, as she has co-hosted Yoo Jae Suk & Kim Won Hee’s Come to Play on MBC for the past four years with Yoo, Family Outing‘s lead MC. Actor Hwang Jung Min (A Man Who Was Superman) precedes her guest appearance on the show. His episodes will be shown on the 22 and 29 of this month.
• Singer Sean (one-half of YG Entertainment duo, JinuSean) surprised his wife, actress Jung Hye Young, with 3000 roses to celebrate 3000 days since meeting. On the afternoon of March 13, Sean came to surprise her on the set of Return of Iljimae and led her to his car, where he had the flowers waiting. She posted the photos on her minihompy and wrote, “I’m the happiest person in this world because of you.”
  

  Jung Hye Young's 3000 roses

• To celebrate the tenth anniversary of his fan club, Agape, Cha Tae Hyun held a fan meeting in the form of a sports meet. On March 15 at Dongdaemun Gymnasium, Cha handed out candy while greeting club members at the door. The event began at 1pm and lasted for about four hours. Fans wished him a happy 33rd birthday (March 25) by surprising him with a cake.
  

  Cha Tae Hyun's fan meeting

  

  Cha Tae Hyun's fan meeting

  

  Cha Tae Hyun's fan meeting

Couple Alert – Kang Hye Jung & Tablo

Kang Hye Jung, 27, has admitted that she is dating Tablo, 28, Epik High rapper  and radio DJ of Tablo’s Dream Station. A source stated that the two met by chance in late 2008 through mutual friends. Since her announcement, the couple has been seen on open dates at cafes and other public places. (This is considered quite unusual for Korean celebrity couples, especially considering that they have only recently begun dating.) Netizens have expressed great surprise at this unexpected match.

Tablo & Kang Hye Jung

Kang Hye Jung is most famous for her starring role in Old Boy. Currently, she is preparing for her Hollywood Debut in Wedding Palace, which is described as a Korean adaptation of My Big Fat Greek Wedding.