Remembering Actor Byun Hee-bong: A Year After His Passing

It has been‌ a year since the late actor‌ Byun Hee-bong passed away. The 18th marks the first anniversary ‌of Byun ⁤Hee-bong’s death. He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and was declared cured after ‍a battle‌ with it, but ⁢the cancer relapsed and he continued to fight the ‍disease until he passed away on September 18th​ of ​last year at the age of 81.

Byun Hee-bong was born in 1942 and debuted in 1965 as the second batch​ of MBC voice actors. He later branched out into ‍acting and appeared in dramas such as Country Diaries, Second Republic, Third Republic, Splendid Dawn, Heo Jun, White Tower, The Sons of⁢ Sol Pharmacy, President, ‍ God of Study, My Girlfriend‍ is a Gumiho, ‌ Princess Aurora, Goddess of Fire ⁢Jeongi,⁤ Blow Breeze,⁤ and Neighborhood Lawyer Jo Deul-ho‌ 2: Crime ⁤and Punishment. His films include Volcano High, Scent of Chrysanthemums, Mr. Kim Bong-doo, 2km from Sicily, Public Enemy 2, Crying⁤ Eyes, The Mayor and Jun-soo, The Game, ‍ Lifting King Kong, ‌and Telekinesis.

In⁤ addition, Byun Hee-bong solidified his position as a ‘national actor’ by receiving attention​ as the persona of the⁣ master director Bong Joon-ho. He has maintained a special relationship with ⁢director Bong, appearing in his feature film debut Barking Dogs Never Bite ‌(2000), ‍ Memories of Murder (2003), The Host (2006), and Okja (2017).

In particular,⁤ Byun Hee-bong​ was awarded the Silver Crown Cultural ⁢Medal in 2020​ in recognition of his‌ contributions to ​various fields of ​popular culture.