KIM Yeong-ok, born in 1937, enjoyed watching plays since she was young. On the recommendation of one of her teachers, she staged a performance of <The Monkey’s Paw> for the school’s art festival, which convinced her to pursue this career. In 1957, she made her first screen appearance in JO Keung-ha’s drama film <Farewell Sorrow>. She passed in 1959 an audition to join Chuncheon Broadcasting Station as an announcer before working as a voice actor for rival c...More

KIM Yeong-ok, born in 1937, enjoyed watching plays since she was young. On the recommendation of one of her teachers, she staged a performance of <The Monkey’s Paw> for the school’s art festival, which convinced her to pursue this career. In 1957, she made her first screen appearance in JO Keung-ha’s drama film <Farewell Sorrow>. She passed in 1959 an audition to join Chuncheon Broadcasting Station as an announcer before working as a voice actor for rival channel CBS (Christian Broadcasting System) the following year, and later for MBC (Munhwa Broadcasting System) since its foundation in 1961. Her voice etched in the mind of every child who grew up around that time, since she dubbed many animation series of the 70s and 80s such as the French-Japanese <The Mysterious Cities of Gold> or the locally produced <Robot Taekwon V>. As it was common then in Korean television, part of her contract as a voice actor was to play extra or supporting roles in the broadcaster’s series, and so in 1969 she took on her first role on television. In 1979, she won the Grand Prize of the television competition of the Baeksang Art Awards for the series <I Sell Happiness>. She remained active on both front until the end of the 80s, when she decided to focus on her acting career. She quickly became a fixture in television, as the preeminence of family drama series provided no shortage of roles as mothers and grand-mothers. She made a sensation particularly in sitcom <Old Miss Diary> (2004) as she played with much intensity a foul-mouthed grand-mother who never shies away from an insult battle. When the series was made into a movie in 2006, she was naturally cast in the same role. She is also remembered as the grand-mother of the protagonist Na-mi in the smash hit comedy-drama <Sunny> (2011). In 2015, she starred as a comfort woman in the historical drama <Snowy Road> (2015).Less