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“Have You Seen An Idiot As Clever As Me?”

Posted December. 04, 2003 23:08,   

한국어

“They say that I am venomous.”

The nickname of comedian Chung Jun-ha, age 32, is “six weeks of venom.” It means that his comedy is fun but too strong a taste because of his intense image. So, it is said that every section he does in a show cannot last more than six weeks.

However, he is now experiencing long-awaited popularity with a show that has lasted longer than the six-week jinx. A section called No Brain Survivor in MBC’s “Comedy House” (7 p.m. Saturday), which started in early May, has established itself as a leading part of the show and has already run for eight months. This section parodies Brain Survivor from MBC’s “Sunday Sunday Night”, a quiz show for fools, which states its contestants neither need a brain nor a head.

He acts like a fool in the show that has produced popular phrases such as “drop your prejudice that I will not guess right”, “I have a sad memory about a cell phone”, “Okay, it’s gonna be exciting today. Phew” and “You are killing the cell phone twice.” On December 2 he was the number one keyword search on the Internet portal site, Naver.

“I’m different from normal fools. I’m a logical fool.” He laughs.

Chung Jun-ha says that he walks a different path from traditional fools such as Younngu (Shim Hyung-rae) or Manggu (Lee Chang-hun). Contrary to Younggu and Manggu who showed their unconfident and indecisive sides as small people and gave a sense of superiority to the viewers, he is an active fool who insists persistently on something logical but unrealistic.

“You don’t know how sexy a red-ripe persimmon is? How can it be so reddish hot and still not be thinking of something sexy? Drop your prejudice that a red-ripe persimmon is not sexy!” (Broadcast on November 22)

Even though he might be a fool, he insists to “drop the prejudice” and to “admit”, says, “I did not solve [the problem] on purpose. I have a bad memory about rabbits.” Through Speed Quiz, Chung Jun-ha holds onto a logical thread and bombards viewers with answers that cause a crash between images. It is brainstorming rather than exaggerating.

“(Question) Who’s the main character of ‘Dae-jang-geum’ who is famous for his/her white face?” “(Answer) Andre Kim.”

“(Question) Who runs down the chimney, gives out Christmas gifts and leaves?” “(Answer) Uncle Tong.”

“(Question) Who invented an electronic bulb?” “(Answer) Eungsami.”

“Who is the bad person between Heungbu and Nolbu?”, a question asks, and his answer is “Either on of them.” “Who made Goebukson?”, a question asks, and he answers, “A group of people,” asking back, “How could he ever make the whole thing by himself?” He is sarcastic about his own life being tamed with the four-choice question in Korean society. He was exempted from the military service as the only boy child in the generation for the fourth time in his family and had studied for the college entrance exam for four years after graduating Kangseo High School but later chose to work instead.

“People in the comedy industry now advise me to avoid bad roles that harass other people in the drama since it hurts my image. Contrarily, people in the drama industry say to me, isn’t it time for you to stop doing foolish comedies?”

He worked as a road manager for comedian Lee Hwi-jae and debuted as a comedian on MBC’s Theme Theater after being selected by PDs. His first role was as a waiter who was holding an ashtray for Lee Hwi-jae in the lobby of a restaurant. Massager, speed motor biker, thief and dog seller were the small roles that he took on in comic dramas. He finally started to draw people’s attention for the first time, in nine years after its debut, with his role as the acting leader of a group of gangsters, who is comic and violent at the same time in SBS’s weekend drama, “Love of Thousand Years” that ended in May.

Currently, he is making a significant impression on viewers as a pimp, In-chul, in MBC’s weekend drama, “Merry-Go-Round.” The character constantly covets the heroine of the drama, Jingyo (Suae). Further with this popularity, he acts as a scamp who harasses the heroine in “Temptation of Wolves”.

“Before, people didn’t notice me whatever I did. Now, people just get knocked out by my telling a lame story. I know what popularity means because I’ve worked as a manager. I am always anxious thinking, what if people don’t even look at me next January?”

He manages to deal with killer schedules for TV and radio shows while sleeping only a couple of hours a day. He is currently running two karaoke bars in Gangnam, Seoul, plans to open an entertainment company, and has also demonstrated his skills as an entrepreneur.

“Since I was in school, I got sick and tired of being repeatedly asked by other people, “What in the world are you going to be when you grow up?”, with a bit of scolding. Now I can answer that question with pride.”



Seung-Jae Lee sjda@donga.com