Kim Hye-ja, Youn Yuh-jung and Ko Du-shim pay their respects to the late Choi Bool-am; Foundation Chairman Chung Mong-joon also visits the funeral home

[Financial News] Visitors from all walks of life continued to pay their respects at the funeral home of the late actor Choi Bool-am (born Choi Young-han) through the evening of the 30th, the first day of the wake. Fellow actors Kim Hye-ja, Youn Yuh-jung and Ko Du-shim, as well as Chung Mong-joon, chairman of the Asan Foundation, paid tribute to him.■ A final farewell from the “Country Diaries” familyKim Hye-ja visited the funeral home at Asan Medical Center in Songpa-gu, Seoul, at around 6:50 p.m. that day to pay her respects. On MBC’s “Country Diaries,” she played the wife of Mr. Kim, the head of the Kim family in Yangchon-ri, portrayed by Choi Bool-am; the two played a married couple for 22 years.
After staying at the funeral home for about 40 minutes, Kim Hye-ja met with reporters, her eyes reddening with tears, and said, “I don’t feel that this is the end. We’ll meet again when we die.” Of the deceased, she said, “He’s someone I miss so much.”
Around the same time, Ko Du-shim, Youn Yuh-jung, Choi Myung-gil and Park Sang-won also visited the funeral home. Ko Du-shim played the eldest daughter-in-law of the Kim family in “Country Diaries” and acted alongside the deceased for many years.
Cast members of “Country Diaries,” including Lee Kye-in and Lim Ho, also visited the funeral home together to say a final goodbye to the deceased. Lee played Gwidong-i, a villager in the series, while Lim played Geumdong-i, Mr. Kim’s adopted son. Lee recalled that, while he was alive, the deceased once called from the hospital saying he wanted spicy fish stew. Lee prepared fish, but was unable to reach him by phone afterward; he said the fish is still in his refrigerator.
Earlier that day, Ko Du-shim paid tribute in a memorial message to the deceased’s life of caring for neighbors in need. She recalled that her ties to him had led her to take part in the Children’s Foundation’s activities as well.
Actress Kim Hye-soo, who had looked up to the deceased and his wife, Kim Min-ja, as parental figures, visited the funeral home at around 2 p.m. that day. She stayed into the evening, comforting the bereaved family and sharing their grief with fellow actors.
Yu In-chon, the former minister of culture, sports and tourism who played Yong-sik, Mr. Kim’s second son, in “Country Diaries,” also visited the funeral home that day to pay tribute, as did actors Na Moon-hee and Cha In-pyo.
■ Chung Mong-joon recalls his father’s ties to the deceasedAt around 8 p.m., Chung Mong-joon, chairman of the Asan Foundation, visited the funeral home. After paying his respects, Chung told reporters that the deceased had been his senior in high school and was “someone who was very close to my father, the late Hyundai Group Honorary Chairman Chung Ju-yung, and got along with him like a friend.” He expressed regret that the deceased had not lived longer and prayed for his repose.
The deceased and Chung were alumni of Seoul Jungang High School, with the deceased his senior. In 1992, Choi Bool-am entered the 14th National Assembly as a proportional representation lawmaker for the Unification National Party, founded by Honorary Chairman Chung. In 2004, he also played a character modeled on the honorary chairman in the drama “Heroic Era.”
The deceased won public affection as Chief Park Young-han in “Chief Detective” and as Mr. Kim of Yangchon-ri in “Country Diaries.” From 2011 through last year, he hosted KBS 1TV’s “Korean Cuisine and Dining,” sharing the food and lives of people across the country.
As chair of Green Umbrella’s nationwide supporters’ association, he supported children in Korea and abroad. As chairman of the incorporated association Zero Camp, he also supported cultural and arts education for juvenile inmates and their reintegration into society.
The deceased passed away on the 29th while receiving inpatient treatment at a hospital in Gangseo-gu, Seoul. He was 87. In accordance with his wishes, his funeral will be held over five days as a Green Umbrella Children's Foundation funeral.
The funeral procession is scheduled to depart at 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 Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, followed by a farewell at Green Umbrella’s headquarters at around 10:40 a.m. He will be laid to rest at Donghwa Gyeongmo Park in Paju, Gyeonggi Province.
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