The government posthumously awarded the 'national actor' Ahn Sung-ki the highest grade of the Order of Cultural Merit, the gold crown cultural medal (1st class), and he has peacefully passed as an eternal national actor.
The government decided to award the gold crown cultural medal to honor the late Ahn Sung-ki, who died on the 5th, for his contributions to the development of Korean culture and the arts. The cultural medal is awarded to individuals with distinguished service contributing to the promotion of culture and the public's enjoyment of culture, and the late recipient will receive the medal for the third time following the Bogwan cultural medal (3rd class) in 2005 and the Eun-gwan cultural medal (2nd class) in 2013.
Ahn Sung-ki, who debuted in the 1957 film 'Twilight Train,' appeared in more than 130 films including A Good Day to Have the Wind, Whale Hunting, Two Cops, Silmido, Bloody Reunion, The Attorney, and Hansan: Rising Dragon, showcasing performances that spanned generations from child actor to elder statesman. In particular, as the lead in Silmido, which in 2003 became the first Korean film to reach 10 million viewers, he is regarded as a figure symbolizing the popular breakthrough and industrial growth of Korean cinema in the 1990s and 2000s.
He also solidified his status as a representative actor of Korean cinema by winning numerous leading actor awards and lifetime achievement awards at major domestic ceremonies such as the Daejong Film Awards, the Blue Dragon Film Awards, and the Baeksang Arts Awards. Chae Hwi-young, minister of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, will posthumously bestow the gold crown cultural medal on behalf of the government.
Meanwhile, according to The Korea Film Actors Association, Ahn Sung-ki died at age 74 on the morning of the 5th at 9 a.m. in the intensive care unit of Soonchunhyang University Hospital in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, with his family by his side. After it became known in 2019 that he was battling blood cancer, he continued acting, but on the 30th of last month he collapsed at home after food became lodged in his throat and ultimately did not recover.
The deceased's funeral was held as a film-industry funeral hosted by the Shin Young-kyun Arts and Culture Foundation and The Korea Film Actors Association. Honorary chair Shin Young-kyun, along with Bae Chang-ho and The Korea Film Actors Association chairman Lee Gap-seong and others, served as four co-chairmen of the funeral committee. The chief mourners listed were his wife, Oh So-young, and his two sons.
At the funeral service held on the 9th, Jung Woosung and Lee Jung-jae, the heads of the late actor's final agency, Artist Company, will carry the portrait and the medal respectively to see him off. Pallbearers will include Sul Kyung-gu, Park Cheol-min, Yoo Ji-tae, Park Hae-il, Jo Woo-jin, and Ju Jihoon.
According to the wishes of the deceased, a funeral mass will be offered at 8 a.m. on the 9th at Myeongdong Cathedral in Jung-gu, Seoul, followed by a memorial funeral for figures in the film industry. Eulogies will be delivered by director Bae Chang-ho and actor Jung Woosung. The burial site is Byeolgeurida in Yangpyeong, Gyeonggi.
In a 2017 interview, Ahn Sung-ki, who said, "I just love movies," conveyed his lifelong sincerity for film. He now remains as an eternally shining star in the history of Korean cinema.<
[Photo] "SNS"
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