Comedian Jeong Cheol-gyu revealed the story of suddenly disappearing from the public eye at the height of his popularity.
On the 23rd broadcast of MBN 'Exclusive World', KBS 19th class public recruitment comedian Jeong Cheol-gyu appeared and shared his story.
After debuting with the 'Blanca' character and immediately winning the rookie award, Jeong Cheol-gyu, who said he ends each day by keeping a daily journal, revealed his precious diary, saying, "They are like talismans to me." Jeong Cheol-gyu said, "Until two years ago, when I came home in the early morning, I didn't have a late-night snack like ramen but drank alcohol. When my mental health wavered with early symptoms of alcohol addiction, antidepressant addiction, and sleeping pill addiction, writing relieved my stress, so I started then."
Lightning-fast star Jeong Cheol-gyu looked back, saying, "When the portal site's comedian ranking appeared in real time, I was number one for six months. My face was on buses, my stories were on the radio, and celebrities imitated my way of speaking — it was exactly like I woke up and had become a star."
Why did he suddenly disappear at the height of his popularity? Jeong Cheol-gyu said, "I was popular for one year and two months, but people around me said, 'You have to erase the Blanca image to survive,' so I came to hate Blanca. My daily pattern was waking up around 11 a.m. and buying one hamburger, one bottled beer, and a bottle of soju at the convenience store. I relied daily on sleeping pills and antidepressants. Staying awake was agonizing." He said that unprepared fame was a huge burden, and stress over his next work left him suffering from severe depression for 10 years.
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