Former South Korean basketball player Seo Jang-hoon on Thursday talked about a series of rumors -- namely one concerning his ex-wife Oh Jeong-yeon -- that had followed him around during his storied career.Appearing on MBC talk show “Golden Fishery: Knee Guru,” the 39-year-old former center said that most of the rumors surrounding Oh were not true, adding that the former KBS announcer is “an easygoing and good person.”“People had been telling stories ever since we got married. I thought they woul

PeopleAug. 16, 2013

This is the first in an eight-part series that examines the social role of design beyond its aesthetic aspect. The weekly series is a precursor to Herald Design Week 2013, Oct. 7-11, which will be organized under the theme of “Re-imagine the World.” ― Ed.Korea is today one of the leading industrial nations with cutting-edge technologies and dynamic design. However, it has not been long that design emerged as a major factor in the manufacturing and lifestyle of Koreans. Considering the country ha

Arts & DesignAug. 15, 2013

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry congratulated Korea on 68 years of independence in a video message on Thursday. “On behalf of President Obama and the American people, it’s my great pleasure to congratulate the Korean people as you celebrate the anniversary of your independence this Aug. 15,” Kerry said in video remarks disclosed through the U.S. Embassy in Korea on Wednesday. “The story of the Republic of Korea is an inspiration to people everywhere, including here in the United States.”“In t

PeopleAug. 15, 2013

A bell was unveiled in a Los Angeles hospital on Wednesday as a monument to long-standing ties between the hospital and its sister facility in South Korea. Named “the Friendship and Peace Bell,” it rang Wednesday in the dedication ceremony. It did not ring only to mark the unveiling but also because when the dedication took place it was Thursday in South Korea. That is Korean Independence Day. The bell dedication commemorates the 128-year relationship between Good Samaritan Hospital in Los Angel

PeopleAug. 15, 2013

MONACO (AFP) ― Andrea Casiraghi, eldest son of Princess Caroline of Monaco, is to marry his Colombian girlfriend on Aug. 31, the royal palace announced Wednesday.Casiraghi, 29, already has a child with the wealthy heiress and socialite Tatiana Santo Domingo, who gave birth to their son Sacha in London in March.New York-born and raised in Switzerland and France, Santo Domingo, 29, is the grand-daughter of Julio Mario Santo Domingo, a Colombian tycoon who died in 2011 and was one of the richest me

PeopleAug. 15, 2013

Celebrated Cambodian filmmaker Rithy Panh has been selected as the winner of Busan International Film Festival’s Asian Filmmaker of the Year Award.The annual prize from BIFF is given to an Asian filmmaker “who has significantly contributed to the development of Asian cinema and culture.” Past winners include Iran’s Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Taiwan’s Hou Hsiao-hsien and Hong Kong’s Andy Lau. The 49-year-old filmmaker’s works have been largely focused on the aftermath of the genocidal Khmer Rouge regime

FilmAug. 15, 2013

Violinist Leonidas Kavakos will join the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra led by Chung Myung-whun on Aug. 29 and Aug. 30 at Seoul Arts Center, bringing his highly acclaimed interpretation of Mendelssohn to Korean classical music lovers.This is the second time Kavakos is appearing with the SPO; he performed the Brahms Violin Concerto with the orchestra in 2007.Kavakos, lauded as the star of the new generation of virtuosos, will be performing Mendelssohn Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64 on both even

PerformanceAug. 15, 2013

PYRAMID LAKE, Nevada (AP) ― Ancient rock etchings along a dried-up lake bed in Nevada have been confirmed to be the oldest recorded petroglyphs in North America, dating back at least 10,000 years.The petroglyphs found on limestone boulders near Pyramid Lake in northern Nevada’s high desert are similar in design to etchings found at a lake in Oregon that are believed to be at least 7,600 years old. Unlike later drawings that sometimes depict a spear or antelope, the carvings are abstract with tig

CultureAug. 15, 2013

BUCHEON, Gyeonggi Province ― What is it like to see one’s graphic novel being turned into a movie nearly 30 years after it was published?According to French comic book creators Jean-Marc Rochette and Benjamin Legrand, whose 1984 work “Le Transperceneige” (Snowpiercer) was recently released as a film, it is “very much like a miracle.”  Following the enormous box office success of the star-studded “Snowpiercer,” the story’s original authors visited Korea to watch the movie for the first time at th

BooksAug. 15, 2013

NEW YORK (AP) ― The day before Oprah Winfrey began shooting “Lee Daniels’ The Butler,” she was at the White House, talking to the president. Her access to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue (this particular trip was for a 2012 campaign interview) is considerably greater than her character’s in the film. She plays Gloria Gaines, the wife of a long-serving White House butler (Forest Whitaker), whose service spans seven presidents and decades of civil rights sea changes. “They said, ‘Do you want to talk to s

FilmAug. 15, 2013

Before “Babayaga,” I thought Disney had captured all the world’s folk tales and remade them as child-friendly blockbusters. But author Toby Barlow got to Baba Yaga ― fearsome witches plucked from old Russian legend ― first, and he brings them to life in 1950s Paris.At the center of the novel is Will, a young American ad man who is not a witch. He’s enjoying the pleasures of the city, although he’ll probably soon be heading home to Detroit. He’s a likable, drifting twentysomething, the kind of gu

BooksAug. 15, 2013

There have been numerous books written about the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.Some have detailed his work as one of the world’s best-known civil rights leaders.Others have examined his writings, philosophy and sermons.But one of his sons wants people to know another side of him ― dad.Martin Luther King III has written a children’s book, “My Daddy, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.,” about his life growing up the son of a famous leader, who while on the go a lot, managed to still be Daddy to his four chil

BooksAug. 15, 2013

The story of a Korean family who dedicated their life to independence movement of Korea is being retold at the Seoul Museum of History to mark Korea’s independence from Japan 68 years ago. The exhibition “A Story of the Dongnong Family: 27 years with the Korean Provisional Government” retraces their footprints of life in exile in China after Korea was colonized by Japan in 1910. The 27-year quest to achieve independence is narrated by documents, photographs and belongings of the family and other

PerformanceAug. 14, 2013

Following on the heels of “World War Z,” “After Earth” and “Snowpiercer,” local theaters are seeing the arrival of another dystopian blockbuster, this time starring Matt Damon. Damon, who is best known in Korea for his 1997 drama film “Good Will Hunting” which he co-wrote with his friend and fellow actor Ben Affleck, visited Seoul for the first time to promote his latest movie “Elysium.”The film, directed by “District 9” filmmaker Neill Blomkamp, is set in 2154 where the powerful live in a space

FilmAug. 14, 2013

Former SG Wannabe member Kim Jin-ho and pop artist Santa are holding a collaboration exhibition titled “Hangang Ae” (“Han River Love”) at Sinsa-dong’s Jaemi Gallery from Aug. 12 to 17. The title comes from the singer’s first solo album released in February. Santa works directly under iconic ’90s singer and musician Seo Tai-ji and is known for his recent collaboration with the design team for energy drink Hot Six in creating the character for Hot Six Light.“Han River Love” features 34 pieces that

Aug. 14, 2013