Kang Ho-dong (born July 14, 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 Baeksang Arts Awards Daesang (Grand Prize) for Television category. This made him the first in history to achieve an entertainment awards Daesang grand slam, including KBS, MBC, SBS and Baeksang.[1]
Along with comedian Yoo Jae-suk, he has terminated his contract with De Chocolate E&TF (a.k.a. Stom E&F) for issues of non-payment.[2] On September 9, 2011, Kang announced that he would be taking a temporary leave of absence from the public eye due to rumors of tax evasion[3] (which were later found to be caused by mistake by one of his agency's accountants). [4] He announced his return to the entertainment industry in late 2012 with S.M. C&C as Kang's new agency.
Personal life
Kang Ho-dong was born in Jinju on July 14, 1970 (11th day of the 6th lunar month), to a family of one brother and three sisters. Kang Ho-dong first met his wife on arranged double blind date with Yoo Jae-suk and on November 12, 2006, Kang married Lee Hyo-jin.[5] They had their first child, a boy named Kang Si-hoo, on March 13, 2009.
Career
Kang Ho-dong graduated from Masan Business High School. After graduating from high school, he started participating actively in professional Ssireum (Korean wrestling) matches. Early in his wrestling career, he lost many matches. However, on July 8, 1989, at the 44th national ssireum championships, the unseeded Kang managed to defeat the legendary Lee Mangi and went on to win the tournament, which marked the start of his successful Ssireum career. Known as 'Devil on the sand' for his arrogant and fearless demeanor, he went on to win the Baekdujangsa Ssireum Championship seven times and the Cheonhajangsa Ssireum Championship five times. He was widely recognized as the youngest ever Cheonhajangsa title holder.
After Kang retired from wrestling, he began his MC and comedian career in 1993, appearing on MBC as a talent. He was influenced by Lee Kyung-kyu, who is a famous MC and comedian in South Korea. He later became the host of a number of popular variety programs such as X-Man, Love Letter and Ya Shim Man Man. Kang has won numerous entertainment awards, and is widely recognized as one of the best television hosts in Korean television history. In 2011, he hosted four popular variety programs – Happy Sunday - 2 Days & 1 Night,[6]Golden Fishery, Star King and Strong Heart.
In 2008, the 44th Baeksang Arts Awards, Kang Ho Dong became the first in history to win the TV category Daesang (Grand Prize) as a comedian. The Daesang had only been awarded to TV actors/actresses ever since its establishment and Kang is the first one to break this tradition.
On September 9, 2011, Kang held a press conference announcing his retirement from the entertainment industry due to his tax evasion controversy and demand for investigation by the National Tax Service.[7]
Kang Ho Dong was investigated for tax evasion. He was initially laid with a fine due to a discrepancy in his numbers, but it seems that there were no formal charges or processes made against the multi-entertainer. On December 17, the Seoul District Prosecutor Office announced, "In the case of the fine being less than $500,000 USD (per year), the National Tax Service must file a charge of tax evasion in order for the subject to be a suspect of tax evasion. However, there has been no such charge up until now, so we have decided to drop the case as of the 16th." Kang Ho Dong's fine amounts to $700,000 USD for a combined three years, significantly less than the required $500,000 USD per year. The National Tax Service added, "Kang Ho Dong's annual fine is less than the required $500,000 USD. Furthermore, he did not commit acts of intentional evasion. It is merely a mistake made on behalf of his accountant, so we will not be charging him with tax evasion.[4]
On August 17, 2012, Kang signed an exclusive contract with SM C&C. CEO Lee Soo-man convinced Kang personally when he was retired along with fellow MC Shin Dong-yup SM Entertainment and made a comeback.
Kang had a rough time after his return to the industry. Multiple programs in three main public broadcasts were canceled because of low ratings. However, starting at the end of 2015, Kang hosted a number of new variety shows in cable broadcast including Knowing Bros, Let's Eat Dinner Together in JTBC and New Journey to the West series in tvN. All of these programs have received very good feedback and high ratings. Thanks to the popularity of the program New Journey to the west, a spin-off program called Kang's Kitchen was launched. As a result, Kang slowly regained his popularity and re-established his status of National MC.
He owns a chain of Korean barbecue restaurants called Baek Jeong.[8]
Golden Fishery was a talk show that aired on Wednesdays. Kang Ho-dong played a "knee guru" to whom celebrities presented a current problem and Kang, along with popular comedianYoo Se-yoon and All Rise Band, tried to come up with a solution.
Star King is a talentvariety program that airs on Saturdays. Each week, there are different challengers who compete for the title "STAR KING" and guests stars are invited to be the judges of the competition.
Strong Heart was a talk show originally hosted by Kang Ho-dong and Lee Seung-gi. It aired on Tuesdays. Each week, 24 guest stars were invited to share their entertaining or heartwarming stories that are related to the theme assigned and the guest with the most touching story was presented with the "Strong Heart" title.
Our Neighborhood Arts and Physical Education or Cool Kiz on the Block is a variety sports show where the members play amateur sports games. When a sport ends, new members join the cast. Only the three permanent members stay, currently Kang Ho-dong (main MC), Jeong Hyeong-don, and Yang Sangguk. The members play against amateur or professional teams, and often fellow stars. At the KBS 2013 entertainment awards, Cool Kiz on the Block received a reward for the best teamwork.
New Journey to the West is a Korean reality TV series well known for reuniting the original cast and producer from the “golden era” of the KBS2 variety show “1 Night 2 Days, “New Journey to the West,” named after the Chinese legend “Journey to the West,” features a trip undertaken by Korean TV personalities Kang Ho-dong, Lee Soo-geun, Eun Ji-won and Lee Seung-gi for 1st season. The first season of the show garnered an accumulated 50 million views on domestic portals by April 19, 2016.[9]
New Journey to the West 2 is a sequel series of New Journey to the West starring South Korean comedians Kang Ho-dong, Lee Soo-geun, singer Eun Ji-won and actor Ahn Jae-hyeon replaced Lee Seung-gi due to his attend to serve active military duty. The sequel however was watched more than 211 million times on Tencent (http://v.qq.com) as of Friday, tvN said. It is the shortest time a video has ever taken on the website to break 1 million views, the South Korean cable network said, adding the show has remained No. 1 in the entertainment category since premiering 45 days ago. (reported by 2016-06-04 11:16)[10]
^Kim Hyun-rok (November 12, 2006). 강호동, 연예계 마당발다운 결혼식..축가는 김종국 [Kang Ho-dong, a wedding worthy of the entertainment industry.. The wedding song by Kim Jong-kook]. Daum News (in Korean). Retrieved November 2, 2022.
^Lee Seul-bi (August 3, 2021). "강호동X김준현, '위대한 집쿡 연구소' MC "꽉찬 재미" [공식입장]" [Hodong Kang X Junhyun Kim, ‘The Great Home Cooking Research Institute’ MC “Full of Fun” [Official Position]]. Sports Donga (in Korean). Naver. Retrieved August 3, 2021.
^Baek A-young (September 30, 2021). "강호동X이수근, '맘마미안' 출연 확정...12월 첫 방송" [Kang Ho-dong X Lee Su-geun confirmed to appear in 'Mamma Mian'... First broadcast in December]. iMBC (in Korean). Retrieved September 30, 2021 – via Naver.
^Jeong Hye-yeon (January 8, 2022). "외나무식탁' 강호동→김준현, 무명의 요리사 소개..먹방 장외 대결" ['One-wood table' Kang Ho-dong → Kim Jun-hyeon introduces an unknown chef.. Food show off-site confrontation] (in Korean). Herald Pop. Retrieved January 8, 2022 – via Naver.
^Kim Hye-jeong (December 21, 2021). "강호동×이동국×김병현→김민경 '피는 못 속여' MC 뜬다" [Kang Ho-dong × Lee Dong-guk × Kim Byeong-hyeon → Kim Min-kyung 'I can't cheat blood' MCs appear] (in Korean). Sports Kyunghyang. Retrieved December 21, 2021 – via Naver.
^Park Soo-in (January 6, 2022). "강호동 은지원, 탁구 부흥 위해 뭉쳤다 '올 탁구나' 1월 첫방송" [Kang Ho-dong and Eun Ji-won, united for the revival of table tennis 'All Table Tennis' premiered in January] (in Korean). Newsen. Retrieved January 6, 2022 – via Naver.
^Choi Ji-yoon (March 6, 2022). "결혼 4개월차 장동민, 장인과 일상 공개…'딸도둑들" [Dong-min Jang, 4 months after marriage, reveals daily life with his father-in-law... 'Daughter Thieves] (in Korean). Newsis. Retrieved March 6, 2022 – via Naver.
^Kim Myung-mi (March 22, 2022). "국과대표' 강호동-이진호-승희, 차세대 과학 영재 조명" [Representative of National Science’ Kang Ho-dong, Lee Jin-ho, and Seung-hee, next-generation science gifted lighting] (in Korean). Newsen. Retrieved March 22, 2022 – via Naver.
^Ahn Tae-hyun (September 5, 2022). "강호동, 추석특집 '라운드 테이블' MC 낙점…6년만에 KBS 귀환" [Kang Ho-dong, Chuseok special 'Round Table' MC selected... Return to KBS after 6 years] (in Korean). News1. Retrieved September 5, 2022 – via Naver.
^Yoo Jeong-min (December 27, 2022). "강호동, 4년만 SBS 귀환…한풀이 재판쇼 '지옥법정' MC 출격" [Kang Ho-dong returns to SBS after 4 years... Resentment trial show 'Court of Hell' MC scramble] (in Korean). iMBC. Retrieved December 27, 2022 – via Naver.
^Jeong, Hee-yeon (March 2, 2023). "강호동, 이경규와 제대로 맞붙는다…'편먹고 공치리5' 합류 [공식]" [Kang Ho-dong and Lee Kyung-gyu properly face each other... Joined ‘Eat and Go Gongchiri 5’ [Official]] (in Korean). Sports DongA. Retrieved March 2, 2023 – via Naver.
^Kim Ji-hye (March 20, 2023). "강호동X이승기, 12년 만에 뭉쳤다..돌아온 '강심장리그' MC[공식]" [Kang Ho-dong X Lee Seung-gi, united after 12 years.. Returning 'Strong Heart League' MC [Official]] (in Korean). Herald Pop. Retrieved March 20, 2023 – via Naver.
^Han Hae-sun (March 21, 2023). "강호동·이승기·배인혁, '형제라면'으로 뭉친다[공식]" [Kang Ho-dong, Lee Seung-gi, and Bae In-hyuk unite as 'Brother Ramen' [Official]] (in Korean). MT Star News. Retrieved March 21, 2023 – via Naver.
^Shin Young-eun (June 22, 2021). "골신강림' 강호동X신동엽, 골프 레전드와 무모한 대결" [Gang Ho-dong X Shin Dong-yeop, a reckless confrontation with a golf legend]. Star Today (in Korean). Retrieved June 22, 2021 – via Naver.
^Ahn Tae-hyun (April 5, 2022). "강호동·이용진·양세찬, '지혜를 빼앗는 도깨비'로 뭉친다…5월 첫 공개" [Kang Ho-dong, Lee Yong-jin, and Yang Se-chan unite as 'Goblin Who Steals Wisdom'... First release in May] (in Korean). News1. Retrieved April 5, 2022 – via Naver.
^Lee Kyung-ho (June 3, 2022). "강호동, 토크쇼 MC 컴백...8일 첫방 '걍나와' 기대↑" [Kang Ho-dong, talk show MC comeback... Expectation for the first episode of 'Gangna' on the 8th↑] (in Korean). MT Star News. Retrieved June 3, 2022 – via Naver.
^Hwang Hye-jin (December 16, 2022). "유튜브에 진심인 강호동, 여행 리얼리티 '강호동네방네' 도전" [Kang Ho-dong, who is serious about YouTube, challenges travel reality ‘Kangho Neighborhood Room] (in Korean). Newsen. Retrieved December 17, 2022 – via Naver.
^ abcdefgJang, Jin-ri (December 31, 2010). 'SBS 연예대상', 강호동 대상, 이승기 2관왕..이변은 없었다(종합) ['SBS Entertainment Awards', Kang Ho-dong Grand Prize, Lee Seung-gi won 2 crowns... There was no surprise (comprehensive)]. Joynews24 (in Korean). Retrieved February 4, 2023 – via Naver.
^Lee, Min-ji (October 28, 2020). "'대중문화예술상' 김희애X현빈 대통령표창 받는다(공식)". '대중문화예술상' 김희애X현빈 대통령표창 받는다(공식) - 손에 잡히는 뉴스 눈에 보이는 뉴스 - 뉴스엔. Retrieved June 18, 2021.
^Yang, Mi-sun (March 23, 2018). 한국 연예계의 세대교체 [Generational change in Korean entertainment industry]. JoongAng Ilbo (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 27, 2018. Retrieved May 21, 2021 – via Joins.
