Learn More About The Famous and Multi-Talented MC, Lee Kyung-kyu
Lee Kyung-kyu is a Korean comedian and a senior MC. He is one of the most highly paid entertainers in the Korean entertainment industry. In 2010, only from KBS, he earned more than a half-billion won, the highest for any entertainer. He is well known for his funny, smart, lively and outspoken character which brought high ratings to his TV programs. Lee Kyung-kyu is a popular, successful and productive TV program host, oftentimes appearing in several programs in the same year. Currently, he is hosting Channel A’s City Fisherman, tvN’s The Dynamic Duo, and JTBC’s Let’s Eat Dinner Together.
Lee Kyung-kyu directed, wrote and performed as the leading actor of his movie, a box office flop, titled A Bloody Battle for Revenge. In 2007, he produced Highway Star, a respectable box office movie. Lee Kyung-kyu started as a comedian, established himself as a leading MC and tried his luck in the movie industry. In this article, Byeol Korea will provide you with a detailed explanation of everything about Lee Kyung-kyu. So stay tuned!
Full Profile of Lee Kyung-kyu
- Name: Lee Kyung-kyu
- Date of Birth: August 1st, 1960
- Place of Birth Busan, South Korea
- Education: Dongguk University majoring Theatrical and Movie Department
- Hobby: golf, fishing
- Height: 170 cm
- Weight: 60 kg
- Blood Type: A type
- Zodiac: Leo
- Chinese zodiac: the Year of the Rat
- Instagram: inandinpictures
- Label: koengroup
Facts of Lee Kyung-kyu
- He is well known as an actor, comedian, MC, singer, film producer, director, and screenwriter.
- He was the highest-earning entertainer on KBS in 2010.
- He released a complete studio album titled Secret Cassette on June 26, 2017.
- His first movie as a director and leading actor, A Bloody Battle for Revenge, went down as a Korean box office flop.
- His second movie as a producer, Highway Star, was a box office triumph.
- Filmmaking is his lifelong dream since childhood.
- He promised to donate 100 million won for aspired directors if his movie National Singing Contest was watched by over 3 million viewers
- He was criticized for playing golf the day after the Sewol Ferry accident.
- He was contracted and appeared in numerous commercials.
Lee Kyung-kyu’s Debut as an Entertainer
Lee Kyung-kyu debuted as a comedian on MBC’s 1st Gag Concert in 1981. He won the second prize while the first prize was won by lady comedian Lee Hyeon-ju. After his debut, Lee Kyung-gyu received many appearance offers as a comedian entertainer. He became more famous as a TV program MC.
Lee Kyung-kyu Love Story and Family
Lee Kyung-gyu married his wife, Kang Kyeong-hee in 1992. She was his junior from the Computer Engineering Department at Dongguk University. Lee Kyung-kyu’s friend introduced her to him and they started a romantic relationship. After 4 years of dating, the couple tied the knot in 1992. At the time, Lee Kyung-kyu was at the peak of his popularity as a TV program host. His wife has a strong Eastern face with large eyes and a sharp nose. In 2015, fans noticed that his wife operated a pet café in Kangnam, Seoul area. Lee Kyung-gyu was known by his close friend as a husband who freezes in front of his wife.
Lee Kyung-kyu and his daughter appeared on SBS’ variety show Take Care of My Dad. On a special Lunar New Year episode, Lee Ye-rim asked her father a very honest request. She asked him to be friendlier toward other people. She added that her father is too scary, that most of the time she can’t talk to him freely. She later joked by saying that he can’t be a king forever. It is true that Lee Kyung-kyu is famous for his angry looking and outspoken character. His daughter is not the only person to complain about his temperament and anger.
In another episode, Lee Ye-rim cried after watching her own variety show with her dad. She thought that she had a boyish image on the show while other daughters had a feminine image. She also complained about her father who always annoyed and irritated her during the shooting.
Lee Kyung-kyu as CEO of KKokkomyeon Ramen
During the shooting of the KBS variety show Qualifications of Men, Lee Kyung-gyu made a special instant noodle or ramen with Korea Yakult during a cooking contest. He later called his recipe KKokkomyeon and patented the ramen recipe. His recipe was the opposite of the highly popular spicy hot ramen represented by the number one brand, Nongshim’s Shin Ramen and Samyang Foods’s Samyang Ramen. The day after Lee Kyung-kyu cooked his ramen recipe, a representative from Yakult, who was also the judge of the cooking contest, contacted him to inquire about his recipe. The company started mass production in April and about 5 months later, in August 2011, Kkokkomyeon hit the shelves and became an instant hit.
Lee Kyung-kyu’s ramen recipe was mild with white soup, the opposite of the established spicy hot with red soup ramen. The success of the product brought a new genre of mild ramen. Samyang Foods immediately developed and released a product with a similar taste in Samyang Foods’ Nagasaki Jjampong. Ottogi, another ramen company, released Chinese-style chicken ramen which sold over 6 million packages within only three weeks.
The popularity of Lee Kyung-kyu’s ramen brought anticipation from the Korean people. Two months before the actual distribution, Korea Yakult started an online commercial campaign for KKokkomyeon. The moment Kkokkomyeon was displayed in local stores, sales soared up. Around 9 million packages were sold in August 2011. Sale was increased by 34% from August in the following month, reaching 13.5 million packages. Over 450.000 packages were sold daily in October 2011. The sale number reached a total of 60 million packages by the end of November.
Koreans enjoyed KKokkomyeon because of the new and different taste from traditional spicy ramen. People were having trouble finding and buying the ramen because it was sold out immediately after reaching local stores.
Kkokkomyeon commercial took a different approach, using a methodological manner, easy to follow pictorial cooking procedure, rather than the ordinary commercial of celebrities munching and slurping ramen. At the end of the Kkokkomyeon commercial, the inventor Lee Kyung-kyu and his daughter can be seen enjoying the ramen.
