Choi Bool-am posthumously awarded Geumgwan Order of Cultural Merit in tribute to his 67-year acting career

[Financial News] The Geumgwan Order of Cultural Merit, the first-grade Order of Cultural Merit, was posthumously awarded to actor Choi Bool-am (born Choi Young-han).
According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on the 30th, the government posthumously awarded him the decoration in recognition of his contributions to the development of popular culture through 67 years of work in theater, television dramas and film. He had previously received the Silver Crown Order of Cultural Merit at the 2014 Korean Popular Culture and Arts Awards.
After making his debut in the 1959 stage production of Hamlet, he was selected as a specially recruited actor by Korean Broadcasting System (KBS) in 1967. He played Captain Park Young-han for 18 years in Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation (MBC)'s Chief Detective.
In Country Diaries, he played Chairman Kim of Yangchon-ri for 22 years, winning viewers' affection with his portrayal of a down-to-earth and humane father.
Chief Detective also brought him a connection with the police. Appointed an honorary senior inspector in 1972, he became the first civilian to attain the honorary rank of chief superintendent in 2024 and served as honorary head of the National Office of Investigation.
For 14 years from 2011, he hosted KBS 1TV's Korean Cuisine and Dining, sharing stories about food from across the country and the lives of the people reflected in it.
Away from broadcasting, he devoted himself to supporting children and young people. Appointed national chair of ChildFund Korea's supporters' association in 1985, he supported children in Korea and overseas. As chairman of incorporated association Zero Camp, he also supported cultural and arts education for young inmates and their reintegration into society.
He died on the 29th while receiving inpatient treatment at a hospital in Seoul's Gangseo-gu district. He was 87. His funeral will be held under the auspices of ChildFund Korea.
The funeral procession is scheduled for around 7:40 a.m. on November 2. A funeral Mass will be held at around 9 a.m. that day at Yeouido Catholic Church in Seoul's Yeongdeungpo-gu district, followed by a farewell at around 10:40 a.m. at ChildFund's headquarters. He will be buried at Donghwa Gyeongmo Park in Paju, Gyeonggi Province.
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