South Korea Proposes Border Meeting With North
New York Times

South Korea proposed on Tuesday to hold a border meeting with North Korea to discuss bringing finished goods and raw materials from an industrial park that the two countries jointly operated until last month.

The Kaesong Industrial Complex has been idle since North Korea withdrew all its 53,000 workers, accusing the United States and South Korea of plotting to invade the North. South Korea pulled out the last of its citizens from Kaesong on May 3, severing the last economic ties between the Koreas.

Neither the North nor the South has officially closed the eight-year-old complex, the best-known symbol of inter-Korean cooperation. But its fate has become a test for inter-Korean relations.

Japanese Aide Visits North Korea
New York Times

A political aide to the prime minister of Japan made a sudden, rare visit to North Korea on Tuesday. Japanese officials refused to say what he was doing there.

Japan and North Korea do not have formal diplomatic ties. Talks between the two governments, which resumed last August after a four-year hiatus, were broken off again in December after North Korea tested a rocket.

Kyodo News, a Japanese news agency, reported that the adviser, Isao Iijima, was met at the airport at Pyongyang, the capital, by a North Korean official identified as Kim Chol-ho, a vice director in the Foreign Ministry. Such a reception would suggest that Mr. Iijima, who is a senior adviser to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, was there on official business.

Orphaned and homeless in North Korea
CNN

The first time Yoon Hee was abandoned, she was an infant.

She was born in a village near North Korea’s sacred Mount Baekdu, where the country’s lore claims its founder, Kim Il Sung, led the fight for independence and his oldest son, Kim Jong Il, was born.

But the similarities between Yoon Hee and her homeland’s rulers end there.

See the CD 13 Candidates Debate in the Elysian Valley
Patch.com (Los Angeles)

On Tuesday, voters will have what is likely a last chance to see the two candidates in the runoff election for the Los Angeles City Council District 13 seat together. John Choi and Mitch O’Farrell will face off at Dorris Place Elementary School at 6:30 p.m.

The 90-minute conversation will take place in the school’s auditorium at 2225 Dorris Place. Sponsored by the Elysian Valley-Riverside Neighborhood Council, the event will feature pre-prepared questions asked by community members.

According to organizer Jeff Klein, the event will be moderated by Tracy Stone and Steve Appleton of the EVRNC. Klein, who chairs the EVRNC’s Outreach Committee, told us in an email that candidates will have four minutes to answer each question, which will cover Metrolink, the Los Angeles River, business/economic development and other issues related to the Eastside and Los Angeles in general.

U.S. Firms See Opportunities in South Korea
Wall Street Journal

Just over one year on from the implementation of the U.S.-Korea free trade agreement, American companies see plenty of opportunities for export growth in South Korea, U.S. Under Secretary for International Trade Francisco Sánchez said.

In Seoul as part of a trade mission with U.S. companies and for meetings with South Korean government officials, Mr. Sanchez said the benefits of the FTA are being seen but it would take a few more years for the full impact to come through.

“There’s been nearly a 50% increase in U.S. auto sales here (since the FTA started in March 2012), orange juice is up 160%. I could name probably another four or five sectors that are doing well,” he said in an interview.

College Admissions and the Asian-American Parent
Huffington Post

The Ivies, MIT, Stanford, Caltech, Berkeley. Maybe Duke, if all else fails… maybe.

That’s the “List” — the typical college list for parents of high-achieving Asian-American students. With over four thousand colleges to choose from, why do so few make the cut?

As one guidance counselor lamented to me, Asian-American parents just don’t show up for information sessions featuring lesser known or liberal arts colleges, regardless of the quality of the school. Yet when it comes to the big name schools, you can’t find a seat. He asked me for advice. While not all Asian-Americans limit their college choices to the List, for those that do (and other parents as well), here is what I have to offer.

We all fall prey to the lure of brands from time to time, and education is no exception. It seems that for many Asian-American parents, only the luxury brands of higher education will do. It would serve us well to stop and think about the purpose of brands, the calculated effort to promote group think and distort reality (as a trademark attorney by training, I have seen this up close). These two goals are out of place, but persist, in the education world.

The Fast and the Furious stars to walk on the red carpet in Seoul
BNT News via Yahoo Philippines

On May 13th at Time square CGV in Seoul, the red carpet event for upcoming movie \’The Fast and the Furious 6, 2013\’ was held with main actors in it. Korean-American star Sung Kang is walking on the red carpet.

Psy to perform in final round of ‘American Idol’
Yonhap News

South Korean rapper Psy will perform during the final round of “American Idol Season 12″ this week, his local management agency said Tuesday.

Psy will perform his new hit single “Gentleman” as a special guest on the American reality singing competition being aired Thursday (American Pacific time) on Fox TV live across the United States from Los Angeles, YG Entertainment said.

Interview: Korean American Comedian Danny Cho Tells it Like it is
Busan Haps

Growing up in L.A., comedian Danny Cho is fluent in Spanish, Korean, English and most importantly, comedy. The Korean-American funny guy returns to Korea this weekend for a show in Seoul on the 17th and then another in Busan on the 18th. In an exclusive interview, Haps talks with Cho about comedy, Spam, Jean Claude Van Damme’s masterpiece, and Gwenyth Paltrow’s imminent demise.

Ken Jeong jokes about screen rants
Xpose Entertainment (Ireland)

Ken Jeong never feels “comfortable” recording his rude quotes for The Hangover fans in case they play them to their young children.

Ken Jeong has joked he doesn’t mind his young twin daughters watching his foul-mouthed on-screen rants because “they’re jerks”.

The comedy actor is famed for his role as flamboyant Chinese gangster Leslie Chow in The Hangover films. His character is famed for his funny one-liners and Ken is often asked to record voicemail messages by enthusiastic fans, although he doesn’t always feel comfortable doing it.

Macy’s San Francisco Union Square: Far East Movement – Interview & Concert
8Asians

As you may or may not have heard, as part of the celebration for Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month, Macy’s announced the hosting of Far East Movement (“FM”) for a series of performances and appearances across the country “geared toward highlighting and celebrating the unique influence of Asian-Pacific Americans on American culture and pop music.”

I had the great pleasure of dropping by Far East Movement’s Macy’s San Francisco Union Square performance on Saturday, May 11th. Prior to their performance, Nicki Sun (who also previously help host a Verizon-sponsored Lunar New Year Union Square performance back in February) asked the members of Far East Movement (FM) about how they got started and other interesting questions.

What in the world is a Refsnyder?
Pinstriped Bible

If you haven’t been following along with Tanya’s daily Baby Bomber Recap, and I think that you should, a man named Rob Refsnyder has come out of nowhere to be the organization’s best hitter by a large margin. He has been phenomenal this season so far and is currently hitting .382/.486/.504 across two levels.

He started his professional career at Low-A Charleston and hit a moderately underwhelming .241/.319/.364 as a 21-year-old. He repeated the level this season, but soon rocketed himself to High-A Tampa after only 13 games. Refsnyder has taken his .370/.452/.481 batting line in Charleston and has actually hit better since his promotion; he has a .391/.512/.522 line in 18 games for Tampa. So far this season he has had an 18-game hitting streak, accumulated five three-hit games and currently has four consecutive two-hit games.

Check out our profile of Rob Refsnyder from the August 2012 issue of KoreAm:
August Issue: Baseball Star Robert Refsnyder Transitions From World Series Hero to Pro Player

Pen pals from 50 years ago meet for first time
Asahi Shimbun (Japan)

Teenage pen pals a half century ago, a South Korean man and a Japanese woman never forgot each other and their postal friendship that developed at a time their two nations were enduring tense relations.

Kim Joong-suck, 66, who lives in Seoul, and Sumiyo Endo, 65, who resides in Shimizu Ward of Shizuoka city, met for the first time on May 13 when relations are again rocky between their two nations. But when the two finally greeted each other in front of JR Shimizu Station, there were only smiles. Kim showed Endo photos of a grandchild in elementary school. Endo told Kim that her first grandchild was born in November.

She was eager to meet Kim because she had been concerned about the awkward way their pen pal relationship ended.

“I thought she would be an active person based on her letters,” Kim said. “I am so glad to see that she has not changed.”

Sung Kang, with KoreAm publisher James Ryu and Warner Bros.’ Rick Ramirez.

Colleagues and friends of Sung Kang celebrate the actor’s latest role, going toe to toe against Stallone.

by ADA TSENG

KoreAm Journal and Audrey Magazine hosted an advanced preview screening of Warner Bros. Pictures’ Sylvester Stallone action flick, Bullet to the Head, at CGV Cinemas in Los Angeles’ Koreatown on Jan. 31. The honorary guest of the night was Stallone’s co-star, Korean American actor Sung Kang, who plays Detective Taylor Kwon, a New Orleans cop who enlists hitman Jimmy Bobo (Stallone) to help him track down the bad guys who killed both their respective partners.

At the event, Kang told KoreAm about the lessons Stallone and director Walter Hill taught him about being the quintessential “alpha male,” both onscreen and off. It’s about exuding confidence; even when an alpha male doesn’t know what’s going on, he acts like he does.

“I’m always running around, feeling like I have to explain myself to everybody,” said Kang. “But alpha males tend to be very quiet. They just stand there, and everyone else gravitates toward them. At the same time, there’s a sense of respect, because the alpha male has earned it.” Continue Reading »

It’s nice to see Sung Kang keeping busy.

The Korean American actor, fresh off a turn as Sylvester Stallone’s character’s unlikely partner in the action film Bullet to the Head, has been cast in Gang Related, a crime drama in which a gang member (played by The Wire‘s Ramon Rodriguez) manages to infiltrate the San Francisco Police Department and rises through the ranks, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

Kang will play Tae Kim, an FBI agent and Asian gang specialist on loan to the SFPD who is wary of the main character. Continue Reading »

Sung Kang as Taylor Kwon in Bullet to the Head. All photos courtesy of Warner Bros.

More Work to Do

Sung Kang, who co-stars with Sylvester Stallone in the action flick Bullet to the Head, reflects on his own Rocky Balboa-esque story.

by ADA TSENG

Sung Kang can check one more thing off of his bucket list: co-starring in a Sylvester Stallone movie.

“I was a big fan of Rocky,” says Kang, referencing the famous rags-to-riches boxer film from the 1970s. His dad collected all the early Stallone films, and their family would often watch action movies together when Kang was growing up in Georgia.  “Whenever I felt like the chips were down or if anybody was picking on me, I’d put on Rocky, and it’d always cheer me up. Rocky is all about a nobody having a chance, and I feel like that’s the story of my life.”

This “nobody” didn’t even have to audition for the role of Taylor Kwon, “a young NYPD detective who needs the help of abrasive hitman Jimmy Bobo (played by Stallone) in order to catch the bad guys who killed both their respective partners.

Inspired by Alexis Nolent’s French graphic novel Du Plomb Dans La Tete, the film adaptation Bullet to the Head, which opened Feb. 1, was relocated to New Orleans, and Thomas Jane had originally been cast for the role of Stallone’s sidekick. Later, when the filmmakers decided they wanted to switch up the typical (read: traditionally Caucasian) cop action genre by casting a minority actor to go up against Stallone, they called up Kang on Memorial Day weekend of 2011. Continue Reading »

KoreAm publisher James Ryu, Sung Kang and Warner Bros. senior VP of targeted marketing, Rick Ramirez.

KoreAm Journal and Audrey Magazine hosted an advanced preview screening of Warner Bros. Pictures’ Sylvester Stallone action flick, Bullet to the Head, at CGV Cinemas in Los Angeles’ Koreatown on Jan. 31. The honorary guest of the night was Stallone’s co-star, Korean American actor Sung Kang, who plays Detective Taylor Kwon, a New Orleans cop who enlists hitman Jimmy Bobo (Stallone) to help him track down the bad guys that killed both their respective partners.

At the event, Kang told KoreAm about the lessons that Stallone and director Walter Hill taught him about being the quintessential “alpha male,” both onscreen and off. It’s about exuding confidence; even when an alpha male doesn’t know what’s going on, he acts like he does.

“I’m always running around, feeling like I have to explain myself to everybody,” said Kang. “But alpha males tend to be very quiet. They just stand there, and everyone else gravitates toward them. At the same time, there’s a sense of respect, because the alpha male has earned it.” Continue Reading »

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