Very sad. Unfortunately, the entertainment industry in most of the world is geared to generate (hetero) heartthrob sap. If you don't conform, you're branded 'unmarketable'.

This was the second South Korean entertainer I'd heard of killing them self recently the other being actress Choi Jin-sil: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/.....31124.html

But – this rash of suicide in the entertainment industry, touches more than just the homosexuals and is beginning to seem sorta suspicious to me. Too many 'prominent' people have just decided to go away all of a sudden.

Course – I do watch a lot of scifi so maybe it's just my conspiracy feelers going up.

I don't think there's any conspiracy here, Key. South Korea is incredibly homophobic, a lot of which probably stems from the egregious and widespread sexism that exists in South Korean society. I think this is somewhat odd considering Japan and S. Korea share so much popular culture and Japan is up there with Taiwan and Thailand as one of the most accepting countries when it comes to homosexuality. Of course, I'm fairly certain that Japan is no where near the level of acceptance that we have in western Europe and the so-called "Blue states" in the U.S.

Yes, I was very surprised when talking to a South Korean co-worker who told me that there were no gays in Korea. She really seemed to believe that, she didn't seem to have a problem with me being gay, but gay Koreans? No way…

Citizengeek, homophobia in Korean society is rampant simply due to the fact that the vast majority of Korean and Korean Americans are Protestants (mainly Presbyterian and Baptist).

This is certainly a sad development…Koreans are generally very conservative people and the only way their views will change is when the old bigoted government retires…it's almost that time, the old fucks are starting to die off. Thank goodness!!!

Grace: roughly 40% are Christians in Korea, not a majority…please fact check first before making bold statements…

Actually, according to Wiki, Buddhism just barely leads Christianity (34% vs. 30%) in Korea.

When I lived in Korea, my host claimed there were no gay Koreans–they all came from Japan.

^___^

I have lived in Korea for almost six years, and have not seen the kind of rampant homophobia one sees in the USA. The Confucian philosophy that is the cornerstone of Korean culture pressures everyone to get married and have children, thus many of the gay Korean men marry and have families, but can be found at Itaewon's gay bars on Saturday night. Religion is not as prominent in the public sphere, especially compared to the States. I think in the CIA Factbook I read people answered 26% Christian, 24% Buddhist, 4% Other, and the rest (over 40%) said "none." But i have heard the "there are no gays in Korea" before, but that is a generational thing. And it can be heard in conservative countries around the world. I am not an expert on Korea, or on suicide, but I would guess there are other factors involved in these recent deaths.

Sadding,

Namu Amida Butsu
Namu Amida Butsu
Namu Amida Butsu!

Very sad indeed. I think the poliece may be trying to use this death to make a statement about homophobia in Korea. While homophobia is not rampant in Japan; gays are a dime a dozen on Japanese TV and most hip urban Japanese treat homosexuality as perfectly normal it is not nearly as open as the West. Homosexuality in Asia will progress along different lines than the West. I have been in a gay relationships with two Japanese men, both of whom are very interested in creating a domestic situation far faster than most American I have dated. May Kim ji-ho find paradise or be born under favorable circumstances as a human.

Namu Amida Butsu
Namu Amida Butsu
Namu Amida Butsu!