Bae Yong-joon (born August 29, 1972 in Seoul, South Korea), is a South Korean actor best known for his roles in numerous television dramas. He is also known as the abbreviated BYJ to many of his fans, or as Yon-sama (ヨン様), with the "sama" being an honorific suffix in Japanese.
Biography
Born in Mapo-gu, Seoul, he was educated in Il-mun Preschool and Myung-il Elementary School. He eventually went to study in PaiChai Middle School and Hanyoung High School.
Bae Yong acknowledged that he had a girlfriend named Lee Sa Gang (aka Sagan Lee, Sagang Lee) , and a photograph of her has since been distributed on the Internet. However, according to a 2005 edition of the I-weekly, a MediaCorp owned magazine in Singapore, Bae has since separated from Lee, citing personal reasons. He has since decided to keep his marital status private. Sources, notably HanCinema, maintain that Bae is still single.
Bae’s agency, BOF, reported that Bae’s apartment at Samseong-dong, Seoul caught fire on May 7 around 8:00 p.m., due to a short circuit. The house was empty when the fire broke out, thus causing no injuries. However, the fire caused damages costing up to 10 million won.
Bae went onto his film debut in PpilKu in 1994. He later went on to star in dramas like "Salut D’Amour" and "Six Steps to Separation" in late 1994 and 1995 respectively.
He first garnered critical acclaim after appearing in a supporting role on Sunny Place of the Young, where he played the role of the heir to a cosmetics company and best friend of the leading actor, played by Lee Jong Won. Through this role, Bae first gained his now-famous ‘regal’ image. His next acclaimed role was in First Love, where he played the role of Chan-woo, a smart, young man with checkered past, who drops out of law school to join a gang to seek revenge for his family’s misfortunes.
After 1999, Bae decided to step away from acting to focus on his education at Sung Kyun Kwan University, where he majored in film studies.
In 2001, he returned to the small screen, appearing in Hotelier. At this time, Bae decided to let his hair grow long, as evidenced from photographs posted in fan sites.
Bae became world-famous as his next dramatic role, "Winter Sonata," despite the fact that it was a TV drama and not a movie, razed all of Japan with as much as 20% of the country watching it. This popularity gave both Bae and his co-star Choi Ji-woo a chance to shift their main stage from Korea to Japan. Other Korean movies and dramas also became quite popular following the Winter Sonata craze. Bae’s role as Kang Jun-sang in Winter Sonata made him the main spotlight of the Korean Wave.
Bae also managed to get a deeper foothold into the Japanese and Southeast Asian market after he starred in the movie Untold Scandal as Jo Won.
Other Information
- Name: 배용준 / Bae Yong Jun
- Japanese nickname: ヨン様 / Yon-sama
- Profession: Actor
- Birthdate: 1972-Aug-29
- Birthplace: Mapo, Seoul, South Korea
- Height: 181cm
- Weight: 78kg
- Star sign: Virgo
- Blood type: RH+ O
Television
- The Legend (MBC, 2007)
- Hotelier (TV Asahi, 2007, ep1)
- Winter Sonata (KBS2, 2002)
- Hotelier (MBC, 2001)
- Did We Really Love? (MBC, 1999)
- First Love (KBS, 1997)
- Papa (KBS, 1996)
- A Sunny Place of the Young (KBS, 1995)
- The Six Steps Toward a Separation (KBS, 1995)
- Sea Breeze (PSB, 1995)
- Salut D’Amour (Love Greeting) (KBS, 1994)
- Barefoot Days (KBS2, 1994)
Movies
- April Snow (2005)
- Untold Scandal (2003)
- Ppilku (1997)
Awards
- 2007 MBC Drama Awards: Best Couple Award (with Lee Ji Ah in The Legend)
- 2007 MBC Drama Awards: Daesang Award for The Legend
- 40th Baeksang Arts Awards: Best Male Newcomer for "The Untold Scandal" (2004)
- 2003 Blue Dragon Awards: Best Newcomer Award & Popular Star Award
- 2002 KBS Acting Awards: Popular Actor Award & Best Actor Award
- 38th Baeksang Arts Awards: Popular Actor Award (2002)
- 33rd Baeksang Arts Awards: Popular Actor Award (1997)
- 1996 KBS Acting Awards: Valuable Actor Award & Popular Actor Award
- 1995 KBS Acting Awards: Rookie Award & Photogenic Award
Links
Incoming search terms:
- bae yong joon friends
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