Lee Eon (5 February 1981 – 21 August 2008) was a South Korean actor and model.

Early life and career

Lee Eon was born Park Sang-min on 5 February 1981. Lee began practicing

ssireum ''Ssireum'' (Hangul: ) or Korean wrestling is a folk wrestling style and traditional national sport of Korea that began in the fourth century. In the modern form each contestant wears only a belt (satba) that wraps around the waist and the th ...

while in elementary school, going on to win gold medals at Korean national ssireum competitions in 1997 and 1998. As a freshman at university, he was inspired by

Cha Seung-won Cha Seung-won (born June 7, 1970) is a South Korean actor, who began his career as an in-demand fashion model in the 1990s. Cha achieved stardom through the hit comedy films ''Kick the Moon'' (2001), ''Jail Breakers'' (2002), '' My Teacher, Mr. ...

to become a model, and after losing made his debut at a fashion show in

Busan Busan (), officially known as is South Korea's most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.4 million inhabitants. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economic, cultural and educational center of southeastern South Korea, w ...

in 1999. His later fashion show appearances included the Seoul Fashion Artists Association Collection.Garcia, Cathy Rose A.
Actor Dies in Motorbike Accident
. ''

The Korea Times ''The Korea Times'' is the oldest of three English-language newspapers published daily in South Korea. It is a sister paper of the ''Hankook Ilbo'', a major Korean language daily; both are owned by Dongwha Enterprise, a wood-based manufacturer ...

'', 21 August 2008. Retrieved on 19 November 2008. Lee branched out into acting, making his film debut in 2006;BRIEFLY: Model-turned-actor Lee Eon dies
. '' Hancinema'', 22 August 2008; originally published by ''

The Korea Herald ''The Korea Herald'' is a leading English-language daily newspaper founded in 1953 and published in Seoul, South Korea. The editorial staff is composed of Korean and international writers and editors, with additional news coverage drawn from int ...

''. Retrieved on 19 November 2008. he played a ssireum wrestler in '' Like a Virgin'', putting his skills to good use and helping lead actor

Ryu Deok-hwan Ryu Deok-hwan (; born June 12, 1987) is a South Korean actor. Career Ryu Deok-hwan began his career as a child actor on stage at age 6. Among his early Korean drama, TV drama appearances was a role on the popular ''Lifetime in the Country'' whi ...

learn the moves. He later appeared in the 2007 hit

drama series In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-gen ...

'' Coffee Prince'', and made his final appearance in KBS period drama ''

Strongest Chil Woo Strongest Chil Woo (; also known as ''Chilwu the Mighty'') is a 2008 South Korean historical drama that aired on KBS2. The titular hero is similar to a Zorro during the Joseon period. The drama served as the last project of actor Lee Eon, who ...

''.

Death and commemorations

Lee died in a motorcycle accident on 21 August 2008. He had been riding home from a party celebrating the airing of the last episode of ''

'', when his motorcycle hit the guardrail of an overpass in

Hannam-dong Hannam-dong is a '' dong'', neighbourhood of Yongsan-gu in Seoul, South Korea. One of the most affluent neighborhoods in the country, it has been portrayed continuously in South Korea's popular culture as a wealthy and luxurious spot, and for this ...

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

, at around 2 a.m. He died at the scene from a

broken neck A cervical fracture, commonly called a broken neck, is a fracture of any of the seven cervical vertebrae in the neck. Examples of common causes in humans are traffic collisions and diving into shallow water. Abnormal movement of neck bones or pie ...

and was taken to the nearby

Soonchunhyang University Soonchunhyang University (SCH) is a private university in Asan, South Korea. SCH was founded by Dr. Succ-Jo Suh in 1978 as a medical college with 80 students. It expanded to a comprehensive university in 1980, offering both undergraduate and ...

Hospital. Many of his colleagues attended his funeral, including

Gong Yoo Gong Ji-cheol (; born July 10, 1979), better known by his stage name Gong Yoo (), is a South Korean actor. He is best known for his roles in the television dramas '' Coffee Prince'' (2007), '' Guardian: The Lonely and Great God'' (2016–2017), ...

, his co-star in '' Coffee Prince'', who took leave from his

military service Military service is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, air forces, and naval forces, whether as a chosen job (volunteer) or as a result of an involuntary draft (conscription). Some nations (e.g., Mexico) require a ...

to hold Lee's memorial tablet in the procession to the grave site.Stars show up at Lee Eon's funeral
. '' Hancinema'', 23 August 2008. Retrieved on 19 November 2008.

Filmography

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* Motorcycle road incident deaths Road incident deaths in South Korea South Korean male film actors South Korean male television actors South Korean male models South Korean ssireum practitioners South Korean male sport wrestlers 1981 births 2008 deaths {{Korea-actor-stub