As I have been reading about Jung II-woo I have bumped into various photos of him with Lee Min-ho. They have known each other since High school. They share the bond of a near life-death experience. They work in the same industry. They were especially close during 2006 and 2007, as Lee Min-ho was in the hospital for along time and Jung II-woo would visit him as much as he could. (This was as a result of the accident they had in 2006. As time went by they managed to keep in touch when they could. I read something funny about them, it is that when they finally coincide in having time off they are very lazy to go out…they are so exhausted from filming their dramas they just want to be home! Can you imagine!
By November of 2008, Jung II-woo had found out that his new work “The Return of Iljimae” had been pushed from a set November Premiere to January! As his fans, he was really bummed about that! But this did not stop him from being happy for his friend in his new drama “Boys over Flowers.” You can see his message to his friend further down. “Boys over Flowers” would air first: January 5, 2009, and “The Return of Iljimae” aired on January 21, 2009. Though they aired close in time, they did not compete with each other as they were shown on different days. Can you imagine it was something like Monday and Tuesday: Boys over Flowers and Wednesday and Thursday The Return of Iljimae! Heaven! Drama wise!
Photos..I’ll post all I have found of 2006, 2007 and 2008 here. I will post Jung II-woo with Kim Bum’s in the near future OK?!
Update: (June 1, 2017) Just found an article that talks a bit about their friendship…I guess their mother know each other too! It’s further down, after the Cyworld Post.
These are from Lee Min-ho’s birthday in 2008:
This is what he wrote in his account of Cyworld in late October of 2008 respect his friend:
난 정일우 2008.10.31 02:00
다시 태어난다.
일지매로.
1월에 다시 태어난 일지매로 돌아오겠다.
혜성아
글 잘읽었어.
요즘 서로 너무 바빠 얼굴도볼시간없지만,
항상 힘내고,
난 너의 친구인거알지 ?
화이팅.
웃는모습으로 조만간 만나자
힘내고 !
민호야
꽃보다남자 캐스팅된거 축하한다.
주인공이라 부담이 크겠지만,
최선을 다해서 너의 멋진모습을 보여주길바래
범이랑 친하게지내고^^
우리모두 힘내서 화이팅하자.
나도 일지매가 되기위해 피나는 노력을해야지.
아자아자화이팅
English (Via Naver Translate) I think it’s a bit better than Google…still…not good enough!
I am a Jung Il-woo 2008.10.31 02:00.
Born again.
As King and the Clown.
Iljimae born again in January, I’ll be back.
O comet
I read your letter well.
Bolsigan, but too busy with each other, face these days, too.
Man up and get all the time,
I am your friend, you know?
way to go
I’ll see you sooner or later to smile.
Cheer up!
Minho
Boys Over Flowers, congratulations on cast.
Demanding, but that the main character.
To the best of your great shows I hope you will.
Been close beomirang ^^
We are all fighting with strength!
We should at pains to be King and the Clown, too.
Go for it, in the Ajara Highlands, the Upper Azat
Article from Sports World. (Translated to English via Google Translate)
Jung Il, Lee Min-ho “Mothers are closely related to each other” … “Stimulate each other over competition”
Sports world | 2009.07.22 (Wed) 08: 11
I opened up the fact that Jeong Il is familiar with the ‘Hanao’ immigration issue and ‘Omchina’.
It is already known that Jeong Il and Lee Min-ho are among neighborhood friends. By the way, it was never known that both of us knew each other until we knew each other.
In an interview with Sports World on 21st, Jeong il revealed that “Mr. Lee Min-ho is a friend in the town who met and got acquainted from junior high school time and became acquainted quickly from university,” while “Mothers are also close to each other” . Jeon Il leaves in the end in 2006 MBC Every day When I rise to Stardom by “somewhat high kick!” When I rise to Stardom Jung Yi to Lee Min-ho is a calculation that was so-called “omcina” going well.
The situation was reversed. At the beginning of the year Lee Min-ho appeared in the role of Koo Jung-pyo in the KBS 2 TV drama “Hana Yori Dango” and became a ‘thunder’ star, Lee Min-ho also became ‘Omchina’ in Jung Il.
However, like some reports it is not competing with each other. Jung Il said, “I thought that Lee Min-ho went up to the rank of stars in” Boys Over Flowing Boys “and that” I really went “and in fact I also called” Congratulations “,” while I was in a very close relationship “It is more than stimulating as an actor rather than a competitive consciousness.”
Meanwhile, Jeong Il will appear in the role of lawyer Lee Tae-young at KBS 2 TV New Mizuki play “Requesting Ladies” on August 19, the first broadcast radio wave.
Last but not least, I wanted to include this beautiful writing:
On Friendship
(This is an excerpt from “The Prophet” by Kahlil Gibran…I consider this one of my rulebooks on life.)
Your friend is your needs answered.
He is your field which you sow with love and reap with thanksgiving.
And he is your board and your fireside.
For you come to him with your hunger, and you seek him for peace.
When your friend speaks his mind you fear not the “nay” in your own mind, nor do you withhold the “ay.”
And when he is silent your heart ceases not to listen to his heart;
For without words, in friendship, all thoughts, all desires, all expectations are born and shared, with joy that is unacclaimed.
When you part from your friend, you grieve not;
For that which you love most in him may be clearer in his absence, as the mountain to the climber is clearer from the plain.
And let there be no purpose in friendship save the deepening of the spirit.
For love that seeks aught but the disclosure of its own mystery is not love but a net cast forth: and only the unprofitable is caught.
And let your best be for your friend.
If he must know the ebb of your tide, let him know its flood also.
For what is your friend that you should seek him with hours to kill?
Seek him always with hours to live.
For it is his to fill your need, but not your emptiness.
And in the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures.
For in the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed.
WITAT
“Boys over Flowers” and ‘The return of Iljimae”…really, how sweet that two men that met in high school would go on to have parallel careers.
“Boys over Flowers” was the drama that won me over to the KDrama world and it really has the perfect combination to win a female heart! I think I share this feeling with a lot of people! South Korea owes a lot to Lee Min-ho and Kim Hyun-joong for that. Kim Hyun-joon was my first KDrama crush! I adored his angelic role as Ji-hoo in “Boys over Flowers.” He looked so beautiful in all those pastels! And… he loves Jan-di and Jun-pyo so much! He’s just so beautiful to watch! The dance at the end with Jan-di…is one of my favorite scenes ever! Tears were flowing like crazy!!! I understand why she ends up with Jung-pyo, but I will always feel so sad for Ji-hoo.
With all respect to Kim Joon fans, there is a little playful part in me that wishes that Jung II-woo would have been the 4th F4…with Lee Min-ho, Kim Hyun-joong, and Kim Bum. He would have been with his two best friends at this time in the industry! But maybe his role would have been too overshadowed by Lee Min-ho and Kim Hyun-joong’s. Though I could see him being Ji-hoo (he certainly has the beauty for it), I feel that Kim Hyun-joong has a certain softness that Jung II-woo did not proyect at that time in his life… he was more like well…Yoon-ho! I can’t explain it…but Kim Hyun-joong was just the perfect Ji-hoo!
In the end I believe that the lead role of Iljimae was much better for Jung II-woo. He learned so much through this role. He became a man through it. No role in Boys Over flowers would have given him that. Iljimae was more complex a character and goes through such an ordeal! He is more difficult to portray. Jung II-woo was meant to be Iljimae!
Still can you imagine him in the photo:
(Some women have all the luck!) 🙂