Model refutes Lee Byung-hun’s claim in trial

The legal representative of Lee Ji-yeon on Thursday stated that the model was in a relationship with top actor Lee Byung-hun.The first hearing on the celebrity blackmailing case, held at the Seoul Central District Court, aroused public criticism nationwide of all three celebrities involved: Lee Byung-hun, Lee Ji-yeon and Kim Da-hee of girl group GLAM. The trial comes a year after Lee Byung-hun married actress Lee Min-jung in Aug. 10, 2013.  Actor Lee Byung-hun. (OSEN)The prosecutor claimed that

Oct. 16, 2014

Australia’s Flanagan wins Booker fiction prize

LONDON (AP) ― Australian writer Richard Flanagan won the Booker Prize on Tuesday with a visceral book about wartime brutality and its aftermath ― a novel the head of the judging team said was as powerful as a kick in the stomach. Flanagan drew on his father’s experiences as a World War II prisoner of the Japanese for “The Narrow Road to the Deep North,” which centers on the Burma Death Railway, built with forced labor at the cost of tens of thousands of lives. Named after a classic work of Japan

BooksOct. 15, 2014

Choi In-ho’s novel published in English

The late beloved Korean novelist Choi In-ho (1945-2013)’s novel “Another Man’s City” was published in English in the United States this week. “Another Man’s City” is the author’s last full-length novel written in 2011 before he died in September 2013 at age 68 after a long battle with cancer. The novel centers on protagonist K, who experiences gradual and increasing shifts and changes in everything he believed to be true. Choi In-ho’s “Another Man’s City.” (Dalkey Archive Press)The scenario of t

BooksOct. 15, 2014

Keaton soars again in ‘Birdman’

NEW YORK (AP) ― When Michael Keaton met Barack Obama shortly before Obama would become president, the then-senator had a question for the actor.“Why don’t you make more movies?”It’s a quandary that has long bedeviled moviegoers just as it has, so it seems, heads of state. Why did the roundly beloved Keaton ― a manic comic actor, an intense live wire, a real-deal movie star ― become such an infrequent presence on the big screen? Even at the height of Keaton’s stardom in the 1980s and ’90s, he was

FilmOct. 15, 2014

Chris Brown leads nominees for Soul Train Awards

NEW YORK (AP) ― Chris Brown is the top nominee for the Soul Train Awards. The R&B singer racked up seven nominations, including best R&B-soul male artist and song of the year for “Loyal.” Beyonce earned six nominations and Pharrell Williams followed with five. Williams and Beyonce will be competing against each other for album of the year, along with John Legend, Drake, Janelle Monae and Michael Jackson. Hosted by Wendy Williams, the Soul Train Awards will be presented on Nov. 7 in Las Vegas. Th

PerformanceOct. 15, 2014

DaeGukNamA goes ‘Rilla’ in last-ditch album

Five-member K-pop boy band DaeGukNamA is returning to the stage in jungle fashion and showing off the group’s animalistic side with its latest EP “Rilla Go!”Under the concept of “bring out your animal instinct,” Hyunmin, Jay, Karam, Injun and Mika have slapped on some face paint and channeled their inner warriors with the release the group’s latest four-track EP on Wednesday. The group’s latest “Rilla Go!” album marks the fifth EP release from DGNA since debuting in 2010. However, after four yea

Oct. 15, 2014

Five indie acts chosen for SXSW

Five Korean indie bands will fly to Austin, Texas, in March to take to the stages of the South by SouthWest Music Festival, according to the state-run Korea Creative Content Agency. The Barberettes, [su:m], EE, Asian Chairshot and Eastern Sidekick were handpicked by SXSW director James Minor during the Seoul International Music Fair, or MU:CON, hosted by the KOCCA from Oct. 6-8 in Itaewon, Seoul.  At the annual MU:CON, which brought in international music scouts from around the world, six more l

PerformanceOct. 15, 2014

Finding home in words: Book club serves homeless

MADISON, Wisconsin ― Sipping coffee and nibbling slices of cake, book club members paged through tattered copies of Alice Walker’s novel “Meridian” and discussed the death imagery throughout the first few chapters of the Pulitzer Prize-winning author’s work.They took turns reading out loud, helping those who had difficulty deciphering some words.All of the paperbacks had been donated. These book club members can’t afford to buy books. And none has bookshelves at home.They don’t have homes.The ho

BooksOct. 15, 2014

From Jimmy Buffet to Genesis ace, guitarists flock to fix-it factory

ORLANDO, Florida ― It’s called a factory, but there’s no assembly line, no automated production.Instead the sawdust-caked Orlando shop known as the Guitar Factory has built a decades-long reputation among local and national musicians as a go-to place for stringed-instrument repairs, as well as custom-built guitars, basses and ukuleles.It’s also a haven for workbench wisdom, where discussions range from politics to parenting to the particulars of replacing a pick guard on an old Martin acoustic.I

PeopleOct. 15, 2014

Church officials struggle to assist mental patients

David Mandani heard voices telling him to kill himself. He was paranoid. He saw things others didn’t.He was spiraling out of control.Mandani was hospitalized but ran away. Family members found him in a park and asked police for help. He was put in an ambulance, tied down and taken to a psychiatric lockdown facility where he spent several weeks strapped to his bed. His condition was diagnosed as schizophrenia.Medication and counseling helped clear up the voices and irrational beliefs. Still, he r

CultureOct. 15, 2014

EXO’s Luhan wants to appear in Chinese drama: report

Chinese media outlet Teng Xun reported on Tuesday that former EXO member Luhan is willing to appear in the Chinese drama “Zhu Xian.” 　According to the news reports, Luhan said to Yang Mi, a colleague at his management agency, H&R Century Pictures, that he wants a main role in the drama “Zhu Xian.” Yang Mi, one of the top actresses in China, is most famous for her role in the drama series “Palace.”　However, neither party has released an official statement yet. Filming of the series will begin nex

Oct. 15, 2014

Gwangju to celebrate multicultural community with GIC Day

The Gwangju International Center will celebrate its 20th annual Gwangju International Community Day in front of the Asian Culture Complex in the city’s downtown area Sunday.The annual day run by the Center will start at 11 a.m. and finish at 5 p.m. It will be centered on a main stage with a talent show and other performances, surrounded by booths introducing groups run by or in support of expatriates here, and cultural showcases.The GIC Day was originally planned for Sept. 29, but the date and v

Expat LivingOct. 14, 2014

Indian Ball arrives in time for Diwali

The Indian Chamber of Commerce in the Republic of Korea is hosting the 2014 Indian Ball in Seoul on Oct. 25.This is the first time the ICCK has hosted the ball, which has been run by different groups in the Indian community here every year, although there was a hiatus last year. The 2012 ball drew 400 guests.After a short performance of Korean music and dance, both traditional and modern, the program will feature Indian dances celebrating Diwali, the festival of lights, which will be celebrated

Expat LivingOct. 14, 2014

Tory Burch book gives look at what inspires her

DALLAS (AP) ― Tory Burch’s new book is all about color, a compilation of the influences that inspire her, from people to music to art to culture to travel to home design.“It’s this eclectic mix, and that’s really what our company’s about as well, so it made perfect sense. It was really taking all the references that inspire us,” Burch told The Associated Press while in Dallas for an event Friday to kick off the release of her first book.“Tory Burch in Color,” set to be released Tuesday by Abrams

BooksOct. 14, 2014

[Herald Review] ‘Frankenstein’ goes beyond throw-away questions

Should mankind be allowed to create life artificially? Why, in the first place, do we need to create life? These themes are explored in a new play directed by Korean playwright Cho Kwang-hwa at Seoul Arts Center ― “Frankenstein.”Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel has been retold and adapted in various forms, including films, stage musicals, theater plays and even children’s books. The classic Gothic tale of a creature that is innocent at heart, but grotesque in form has moved many around the world. In Ko

CultureOct. 14, 2014

Rare French-made animation film showcases home talent

A rare feature-length animation film produced entirely in France, “Yellowbird” premiered on Sunday at the London Film Festival, a heartwarming tale of an orphaned bird leading a migration across the world.The story was inspired by airlines which flew thousands of swallows across the Mediterranean in 1974 after the birds began dying en masse before they could migrate due to an early winter.The main character, Yellowbird, is an orphaned chick who is forced to lead a migration to Africa after he is

FilmOct. 14, 2014