Lee Soo-geun (; born February 10, 1975) is a South Korean

comedian A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing Amusement is the state of experiencing humorous and entertaining events or situations while the person or a ...

who has worked on a number of

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

shows on South Korean

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

. He began his career as a comedian on KBS ''

Gag Concert ''Gag Concert'' ( ko, 개그콘서트) was a South Korean sketch-comedy television show more commonly known as ''Gag Con'' ( ko, 개콘). It began airing on September 4, 1999 and aired its last episode on June 26, 2020, making it South Korea's ...

'', and is under the management of

SM Culture & Contents SM Culture & Contents ( ko, 에스엠컬처앤콘텐츠; SM C&C) is a South Korean advertising, production, travel and talent company under SM Studios, a wholly-owned subsidiary of SM Entertainment. The company operates as a talent agency, televi ...

agency.

Career

Before entering the entertainment industry, Lee worked as a recreational instructor, and entered a singing contest on MBC's ''River Music Festival'' (강변가요제). He was also an

aerobics Aerobics is a form of physical exercise that combines rhythmic aerobic exercise with stretching and strength training routines with the goal of improving all elements of fitness (flexibility, muscular strength, and cardio-vascular fitness). It ...

instructor. In October 2006, he began his own online internet shopping mall, selling clothes. In May 2008, he became an

ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or sov ...

for the Pork Management Committee (양돈 자조금 관리위원회 홍보대사) Lee has appeared on many

reality Reality is the sum or aggregate of all that is real or existent within a system, as opposed to that which is only imaginary. The term is also used to refer to the ontological status of things, indicating their existence. In physical terms, r ...

variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

shows. He made a breakthrough in his career after appearing on KBS' ''

Happy Sunday ''Happy Sunday'' ( ko, 해피 선데이) is a Korean reality-variety show shown on the KBS2 network, which competes directly against MBC's '' Sunday Night'' and SBS's '' Good Sunday'' line-up. Although it has been broadcast since 2003, its line ...

'': '' 1 Night 2 Days''. He was seen as the most hardworking member of the cast and was in charge of driving in the show, as he had a commercial

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

license. After appearing on the show, he earned more recognition and was offered MC roles on other shows, such as season 2 of ''Sang Sang Plus'', his first TV appearance in the role of an MC. His marriage was broadcast on national television on ''1 Night 2 Days''. Up until 2012, he was signed under ''Castle J Entertainment'', and on September 19, it was announced that he had signed exclusive contracts with SM C&C, a subsidiary of

SM Entertainment SM Entertainment Co., Ltd. () is a South Korean multinational entertainment agency. It is one of South Korea's largest entertainment companies where it was established in 1995 by record executive and record producer Lee Soo-man. The company ha ...

, along with

Kim Byung-man Kim Byung-man (born July 29, 1975) is a South Korean comedian, best known for his slapstick and acrobatic stunts as a ''Master'' in ''Gag Concert'', and survival skills in ''Law of the Jungle'' as he acts as the Chief of the show. In November 2 ...

, immediately after fellow national MC

Kang Ho-dong Kang Ho-dong (born June 11, 1970) is a South Korean television host and comedian, who first became known to Koreans as one of the top Korean traditional wrestlers. In 2008, Kang Ho Dong became the first comedian in history to win the Baeksan ...

and Shin Dong-yup joined. In December 2015, he reunited with Kang Ho-dong as a cast member for

JTBC JTBC (shortened from ''Joongang Tongyang Broadcasting Company'' (; stylized as jtbc) is a South Korean nationwide pay television network. Its primary shareholder is JoongAng Holdings, with a 25% stake. It was launched on 1 December 2011. JTBC ...

's new variety show, ''

Knowing Bros ''Knowing Bros'' (), also known as ''Men on a Mission'' or ''Ask Us Anything'', is a South Korean television entertainment program produced by SM C&C that premiered on December 5, 2015, and currently airs on Saturdays at JTBC. Although the sho ...

''. In 2017, Lee Soo-geun appeared in more than ten programs over the course of a year and showed his unique charm in various programs.

Personal life

Lee married Park Ji-yeon in 2008. They have 2 sons from their marriage, Lee Tae-joon and Lee Tae-seo. Lee's mother is a

shaman Shamanism is a religious practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with what they believe to be a spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spiritu ...

. He is a

Taekwondo ''Taekwondo'', ''Tae Kwon Do'' or ''Taekwon-Do'' (; ko, 태권도/跆拳道 ) is a Korean form of martial arts involving punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast kicking techniques. T ...

black belt (he is currently a 5th dan black belt in Taekwondo and has demonstrated his skills on various

variety shows Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical performances, sketch comedy, magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is normally introduced by a compèr ...

such as ''Guesthouse Daughters'' and ''

'').

Controversies

In 2013, Lee was under the investigation for suspicion of online illegal gambling along with

Tony An Tony Ahn (; born June 7, 1978) is a South Korean singer, best known as a member of boy band H.O.T. After H.O.T. disbanded in 2001, its ex-members Tony Ahn, Jang Woo-hyuk and Lee Jae-won formed the dance music trio jtL. Eventually, JTL unoffic ...

Tak Jae-hoon Bae Sung-woo (Korean: 탁재훈; born 24 July 1968), better known by his stage name Tak Jae-hoon, is a South Korean singer, actor and entertainer. He first became known for being part of K-pop K-pop (), short for Korean popular music, is ...

, Andy Lee &

Boom Boom may refer to: Objects * Boom (containment), a temporary floating barrier used to contain an oil spill * Boom (navigational barrier), an obstacle used to control or block marine navigation * Boom (sailing), a sailboat part * Boom (windsurfi ...

. Lee was involved in an illegal sports gambling scandal, in which he placed bets on the results of top division football teams in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

by using an illegal online gambling website and cell phone text messages. Lee has claimed to have bet billions of Korean won on online sports betting websites. As a result of researching his gambling activities, Lee Soo-geun was found to have gambled using from December 2008 to June 2011. In the first public trial on the morning of December 6, 2013, Judge Shin Myung-hee of the Seoul Central Prosecutor's Office charged Lee Soo Geun with eight months in prison and two years of probation. Lee Soo Geun, who appeared in the first public trial with his lawyer, repeatedly acknowledged his crime and begged for mercy. After two years of self-restraint time at home, he returned with billiards competition show "Juk-bang Legend". Before filming the first episode of the show, Lee said "I will restart as if it is my first time."

Discography

* 2020: "SWAG" (ft. Chin Chilla and Jiselle) - '' Show Me The Play 2 Final'' * 2019: "White Winter" (with. Kim Hee-chul) - '' STATION X 4 LOVEs for Winter Part.3'' * 2010: "Huk" (ft. Eun Jiwon) * 2009: "Happy Song" (ft. Ez-Life) * 2009: "Let's Keep Going Until the End" (ft. Eun Jiwon)

Filmography

Awards

Listicles

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Soo-geun 1975 births Living people Gag Concert South Korean Buddhists South Korean comedians South Korean male film actors South Korean male taekwondo practitioners South Korean television personalities Best Variety Performer Male Paeksang Arts Award (television) winners