The Korea Herald

A modern-day Cassandra in rural Korea

FilmNov 7, 2013

Director Yeon Sang-ho presents another grim, powerful animated film
SM to hold star-studded weeklong concert series

MusicNov 7, 2013

SHINee, Girls’ Generation, TVXQ, Super Junior, f(x) and EXO will all combine forces next month in S.M. Entertainment’s first weeklong concert series festival. “SMTown Week,” will parade the six leading teams of the SM family starting Dec. 21 in an eight-day back-to-back solo concert performance series being held at KINTEX exhibition center in Ilsan, Gyeonggi Province. It is expected to attract around 100,000 fans, including those coming in from overseas on special travel packages. SHINee will op
Actor Choi Min-sik to star in a Luc Besson movie

FilmNov 7, 2013

Korean veteran actor Choi Min-sik (“Oldboy,” “Nameless Gangster”) is to star in the latest project by French filmmaker Luc Besson (“The Lady,” “The Fifth Element”), along with American actors Scarlett Johansson and Morgan Freeman. He left for France to shoot the movie on Nov. 1.The movie, titled “Lucy,” is about a drug mule (Johansson) who is endowed with superhuman abilities. Choi’s participation in the film was revealed during the French director’s upcoming lineup announcement at the Venice Fi
New album leaked, Lady Gaga hints at show from space

MusicNov 7, 2013

WASHINGTON (AFP) ― Lady Gaga is streaming her new album a week early after leaks, but she hinted Wednesday at an out-of-this-world publicity splash with its official launch ― a concert in space.The multi-platinum-selling pop diva‘s third album, “Artpop,” went up without warning on iTunes after a trickle of leaks in recent days on the Internet. The first official release was Wednesday in Japan.But the rarely subtle singer gave fans another reason to wait for the album’s official international lau
5 paintings from the trove found in Germany

TheaterNov 6, 2013

AUGSBURG, Germany (AP) ― German investigators on Tuesday showed images of some of the hoard of more than 1,400 art works they found at a Munich apartment. Here is a glance at some of the highlights.Max Liebermann “Two riders on the beach,” a favorite subject of the German painter that recurs repeatedly in his work. Investigators didn’t give details of the work’s history. Liebermann, who was Jewish, quit Germany’s Academy of Arts in 1933 after it decided no longer to exhibit works by Jewish artis
Unknown works by Chagall, Matisse come to light

TheaterNov 6, 2013

Restitution remains a complex legal, moral problem
Hip-hop heads come together for ‘See More on the Beat’

MusicNov 6, 2013

Grab your snapbacks and pull on your high-tops for a night of hip-hop at “See More on the Beat,” featuring both first-generation hip-hop artists and rising rookies. The festival kicks off on Dec. 7 at lounge Wav, located beside the Han River. Organizers say the concert will focus on hip-hop performances you can not just listen to, but also see and feel with your whole body. Event organizers have also hinted at possible collaborations between the artists.Aside from the line-up which includes prom
Rather not invited to join CBS coverage of Kennedy

TelevisionNov 6, 2013

NEW YORK (AP) ― CBS News hasn’t invited Dan Rather back to participate in its 50th-anniversary coverage of the Kennedy assassination, but images of the longtime anchor who parted bitterly with the network will be a part of its upcoming documentary on how the story unfolded that day.Rather helped organize CBS’ plans for President John F. Kennedy’s visit to Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963, and as a young reporter was a key component of assassination coverage. Now 82, with his own show on AXS-TV, he’s one
50 years looks good on ABC’s ‘General Hospital’

TelevisionNov 6, 2013

NEW YORK (AP) ― A few years ago, ABC’s “General Hospital” was in trouble.“All My Children” and “One Life to Live” had been given their series’ end dates and the “GH” cast and crew worried their show would be next. “You’d be on set and you’d hear little things like, ‘Oh, we’ve got maybe six months”’ before cancellation, said Jason Thompson, who plays Patrick Drake on the longest-running daytime show. “It was tough.”“We had a couple holes in the ship,” added Kelly Monaco, who plays Samantha Morgan
‘Glee,’ Sandra Bullock top People’s Choice nominees

TelevisionNov 6, 2013

LOS ANGELES (AFP) ― Hit TV show “Glee” topped the list of nominees for the public-voted People’s Choice awards announced Tuesday, while Sandra Bullock and singer Katy Perry were also among the most short-listed.Veteran actor Robin Williams, who won his first People’s Choice Award in 1979 for “Mork and Mindy,” won another nomination nearly 35 years later in the same category, favorite actor in a new TV series, for “The Crazy Ones.”“Bridesmaids” star Melissa McCarthy was the only actress to win no
Iranian artist Farhad Moshiri’s recent works on exhibit in Seoul

TheaterNov 5, 2013

The latest works by Farhad Moshiri, one of the most celebrated artists in the Middle East, are on exhibit in Seoul for the first time. The artist, born in Iran in 1963 and educated in the U.S., rose to instant fame in the global art world as his crystallized work “Love” was sold for more than $1 million at the 2008 Bonhams auction in Dubai.He also received attention for “Life is Beautiful,” his 2009 installation that consists of hundreds of kitchen knives stuck on a wall to create the phrase. Th
Empty chair to represent China’s Ai Weiwei at Sweden film fest

FilmNov 5, 2013

STOCKHOLM (AFP) ― When the Stockholm Film Festival opens Wednesday, the jury will include world-famous Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei ― in spirit only, represented by an empty chair he designed himself.The 56-year-old Ai, who is not allowed to leave China, was deliberately chosen for the film fest, whose theme this year is “freedom,” even though he was never likely to attend.“I feel very good about being part of the jury because for me it’s always important to get involved,” he told AFP by t
Mystery shrouds discovery of art trove stolen by Nazis

TheaterNov 5, 2013

BERLIN (AFP) ― The discovery in a rubbish-strewn flat in Germany of nearly 1,500 paintings including works by Picasso and Matisse looted by the Nazis sparked urgent calls Monday to hunt for their rightful owners.The shock find was reported Sunday by news weekly Focus, which valued the works at around 1 billion euros ($1.3 billion). German government spokesman Steffen Seibert said Berlin had been aware of the case for “several months” and was assisting an investigation by public prosecutors with
‘Friend 2’ is a letdown

FilmNov 5, 2013

Director Kwak Kyung-taek brings sequel to his 2001 record-breaking film ‘Friend’
Park Jin-young earns big in digital royalties

MusicNov 5, 2013

Despite the nation’s two biggest entertainment agencies SM and YG dominating Korea’s mainstream music business, Park Jin-young, founder and CEO of JYP Entertainment, has topped the annual royalty rankings for the second straight year, according to Korea Music Copyright Association. He earned approximately 1.2 billion won ($1.1 million) last year. With the Wonder Girls’ lackluster comeback last year leading to the group’s hiatus as well as the less-than-impressive debut of JYP’s rookie duo 15& wi