김정훈 金桢勋

iWeekly Magazine (Singapore) 2 Nov 2006 {Translation}


This is part of a larger article on Strawberry Generation celebrities, featuring Yoon Eun Hye, Joo Ji Hoon, Kim Jeong Hoon, Edison Chen and Charlene Chai. It basically seeks to spotlight a generation of youths born in/after the 80s, and the characteristics of this Strawberry Generation.

Overview:
When you mention the Strawberry Generation, the first reaction of people around you would be to frown.
The Strawberry Generation: Encompasses the Generation Y youths born after the 80s.
Strawberry traits: Fresh, radiant appearances, sweet personalities tinged with sourness. Maturing in the greenhouse, unable to withstand torture, requires care in order to grow.
The Strawberry Generation in the eyes of many: self-centred, unrealistic, too weak to withstand blows, accustomed to a pampered upbringing.
However, there are always two sides to all things. They are simultaneously courageous, unafraid to express themselves, pursue life’s luxuries, full of creativity, passionate about freedom.
Unripe strawberries, nevertheless less palatable due to their sourness, aren’t something everyone can accept; only a high-pressure environment will cause people to mature quickly, and one such environment is the entertainment business.
To observe the Strawberry idols who have been steeped in the entertainment business for years, it’s not hard to realize that even strawberries ripen one day.

Kim Jeong Hoon
Birth date: 20 January 1980

Strawberry Traits
1. The Genius Celebrity
The average person’s IQ is between 90-100, while Kim Jeong Hoon’s IQ is as high as 145. With consistently outstanding grades since he was a young boy, he obtained 380 points in high school which ranked him 20th at the national level, gaining entry into Seoul University’s medical school, majoring in dentistry. He was also the national top student for chemistry that year. As a child, his family background wasn’t ideal, and his parents spent their days borrowing and returning money. This contributed to his learning to be very sensitive to people’s emotions and behaviour.

2. Troubled Young Man
While Kim Jeong Hoon’s IQ is superior to others’, his EQ pales somewhat in comparison. In his second year of high school, his physics grades were suffering, which led the usually-academically-excellent Jeong Hoon to finally slip into depression. “Actually I’m unable to pinpoint the real reason, just felt bored, the time spent sitting idly just got longer and longer. Even going to the hospital was useless.” With his family’s support, the gloom lifted half a year later. After becoming a singer, unable to withstand the pressure of balancing both university studies and career at the same time, the depression started to set in again. Finally, he chose to quit school and switch to studying acting.

3. Playful Generation
He describes the Kim Jeong Hoon of high school days as “a learning machine”. Upon entering university, he began a different kind of life. He became enamoured of foosball (table soccer), and one of the things that made him happy at that point in time was when schoolmates said, “Your foosball prowess is universally acknowledged.”
Besides, he is also fond of online gaming, and likes to play multiplayer online LAN games under pseudonyms. In order to come up with impressive monikers, he spends long hours poring over books in search of inspiration. The most important items he keeps in his bag are comic books (manga). ‘Redmoon’, a Korean comic in which a boy saves the Earth, drew tears while he was reading it. More recently, he’s become fascinated with a Japanese comic, ‘Death Diary’.

Strawberry Milestones
1. Acting in drag
In high school, Kim Jeong Hoon joined a student recreation committee event in which he performed in drag (crossdressed). This caused a huge wave of reaction in the school. He recalls bemusedly of himself, “In terms of sex appeal, I’m afraid even Madonna has to step aside.”

After the performance, he even received quite a few love letters from neighbouring girls’ schools and became popular in school. He also began to have an interest in performing.

2. Model group debut
He joined a singing contest in 1998, but was ousted in the finals. This didn’t prevent him from becoming a star, however. After being talent-scouted by a manager/agent, he underwent a hellish stint of vocal training, and formed U.N. with Choi Jung Won in 1999. They became a prominent model singing group. In 2005, however, they went their separate ways, citing “different musical ideals” as the reason.

3. A change of luck
Flying solo, Kim Jeong Hoon acted in a number of television dramas, but in negligible supporting roles. Until he accepted the role in Goong, his acting career was rather lackluster and he thus considered going on a hiatus from entertainment and furthering his studies abroad. Who knew that at this opportune moment, his role in Goong resurrected his career. The resulting white-hot popularity has seen him ceaselessly promoting in Japan and Taiwan. Striking while the iron is hot, he has also released a new album, Best.

Strawberry Ripeness Meter: 3 and a half out of 5 strawberries
The Strawberry trait of being good-looking but easily destroyed is apparent with Kim Jeong Hoon, as is the saying that genius is never happy. However, it is due to this very melancholy quality that he is able to flesh out the character of Yul. The troubled look in his eyes and gentle yet deep aura, have swept thousands of young girls off their feet.

For Kim Jeong Hoon, who has been in the business for 7 years, the cliché “Without going through a harsh bonechilling winter, you will never get to smell the fragrance of plum blossoms”, sums it up aptly.

EXTRA!
The Four Nos
Do not judge Strawberry idols by the usual standards. Odd taboos and logic evidence the thought processes and style of these new celebrities.

1. No exposing of his forehead. Of his features, Kim Jeong Hoon is most satisfied with his eyes, and least with his forehead. He thinks that his forehead is too big, making him look very soft and immature. So no matter what hairstyle he uses, he never fails to cover it up with a fringe.

2. No phototaking from a low angle: Besides his forehead, Kim Jeong Hoon also dislikes his nostrils as he thinks that they are too big. So in most cases, he dislikes being photographed from a low angle.

3. No describing him as cute: When he was little, his older sister once dressed him up as a little girl and took him out, even photographing him for memory. This memory haunts him. He dislikes people praising him as ‘cute’, much in the same way females would prefer not to be described as ‘strapping’.

4. No asking about his withdrawal from school: Old dreams do not need to be remembered. When he withdrew from the famous Seoul University, he felt very stressed. He once revealed in an interview that he was most afraid of the media pursuing this matter. Catapulting to fame, however, caused the media to reopen the case and ask about it umpteen times, and even if he isn’t sick of talking about it, we’ll be sick of hearing about it.

** Some trivia of especial note to those who are also Edison Chen fans: From this article, I discovered that he and Edison Chen share the same birth date!

Translated by MissusGabriel

taken from kimjunghoonlub