"National actor" Ahn Sung-ki died six days after being admitted to the intensive care unit, at age 74.
Ahn Sung-ki died on Jan. 5 in the intensive care unit at Soonchunhyang University Hospital in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, while receiving treatment with his family by his side.
On the 30th in the afternoon, Ahn lost consciousness after food became lodged in his airway and was taken to the hospital emergency room. He was then moved to the intensive care unit and treated, but ultimately did not recover.
A year after being diagnosed with blood cancer in 2019, Ahn was declared fully recovered, but the cancer recurred during follow-up observation, and he focused on treatment until recently.
Debuting in 1957 with Twilight Train by director Kim Ki-young, Ahn Sung-ki appeared in about 140 films. As a national actor, he was respected and loved not only for his outstanding acting skills but also for his upright conduct.
He appeared in Mandala (1981, Im Kwon-taek), which depicted a pursuit of the path on the road, Two Cops (1993, Kang Woo-suk), which opened a new chapter for Korean comedy films, Nowhere to Hide (1999, Lee Myung-se), and Revivre (2015, Im Kwon-taek), among more than 170 films over 69 years.
The late actor's funeral altar is reportedly set to be arranged at Seoul St. Mary's Hospital.