A sales woman holds up promotional items to mark the 75th anniversary of Nescafé in Seoul. Korea Times file
Nescafé is holding nationwide events to mark its 75th anniversary.
The coffee brand will offer “1938 special edition” coffees throughout nine retail stores of E-mart and Hanaro Club Mart to 750 customers through May 22.
The special edition coffee will be packaged in replicas of the original coffee cans developed and sold in 1938.
People with a purchase of over 20,000 won at the stores can scan the event QR code and participate in the instant lottery to win the limited edition coffees along with mugs.
Through its official Facebook page, people can also own the limited edition coffees, by posting their comments on the ongoing “7.5 day global coffee road” event, where five teams who won the event in March will launch a global tour from May 28. The 75 successful winners will be announced on June 20.
Nestle’s coffee brand Nescafé has become a global name since its launch in 1938, selling 5,500 cans per second.
Lee Byung-hun is a South Korean actor. He is best known for starring in Joint Security Area, A Bittersweet Life, The Good, the Bad, the Weird, I Saw the Devil and Gwanghae.
Lee, along with Ahn Sung-ki, are the first Korean actors to imprint their hand and foot prints on the forecourt of Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles.
Career
Lee made his debut in the television drama Asphalt My Hometown after auditioning in a KBS talent audition in 1991.
He made his big breakthrough in 2000 with Joint Security Area directed by Park Chan-wook, which broke the box office record and became the highest grossing film of all time. His portrayal of the border-guard soldier won him Best Actor at the Pusan Film Critics Awards.
In 2001, he gained wide popularity in the drama Beautiful Days as an arrogant businessman who falls for an innocent orphan (Choi Ji-woo). In 2003 he received the Grand Prize at the SBS Drama Awards and Best Actor at the Baeksang Arts Awards for his role in the poker drama All In.
In 2005, he earned critical acclaim for his performance in A Bittersweet Life directed by Kim Ji-woon which was screened out of competition at the Cannes Film Festival. Lee was nominated for Best Actor at the Blue Dragon Film Awards and Grand Bell Awards, and won at the Chunsa Film Art Awards, Baeksang Arts Awards and the Critics Choice Awards.
He reunited with director Kim Ji-woon in The Good, the Bad, the Weird, taking on his first villain role. The film was screened out of competition at the Cannes Film Festival. The followng year he appeared in I Come with the Rain opposite American actor Josh Hartnett and Japanese actor Takuya Kimura. He then made his Hollywood debut as Storm Shadow in G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, also starring Channing Tatum and Sienna Miller.
In late 2009, Lee returned to TV in the espionage action thriller Iris as a secret agent who finds himself at the center of an international conspiracy. It was one of the most expensive shows ever produced with filming locations in Hungary, Japan as well as South Korea. It became one of the highest rated dramas of 2009 and his performance earned him the Grand Prize at the KBS Drama Acting Awards and Best Actor at the Baeksang Arts Awards.
In 2010 Lee starred in I Saw the Devil with Choi Min-sik, his third collaboration with director Kim Ji-woon, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. His portrayal of the intelligence agent won him the Grand Prize at the Paeksang Arts Awards.
In 2013, he reprised his role as Storm Shadow in G.I. Joe: Retaliation. On 23 June 2012, Lee, along with Ahn Sung-ki, became the first Korean actors to leave their hand and foot prints on the forecourt of Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles. He was recognised as an emerging star in Hollywood for his role of Storm Shadow in G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, and its sequel, G.I. Joe: Retaliation. In October, he won Best Actor at the Grand Bell Awards for his dual role in the lavish period drama Gwanghae. The film was a box office hit, becoming the 7th film in Korean history to surpass 10 million admissions.
Lee was then cast in the American film RED 2, the sequel to the 2010 action-comedy hit RED, alongside Bruce Willis, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Helen Mirren and John Malkovich.
Other work
Lee formed a management company BH Entertainment which manages many actors including Han Hyo-joo, Go Soo, and Han Chae-young. He owns a shop BHNC which sells hats, scarfs and wallets.
Lee Byung-hun most notably in the video game industry provided his likeness for the main character Wayne Holden, in the 2006 instant mega-hit Lost Planet: Extreme Condition, for the Xbox 360, PS3 & PC.
Personal life
Lee was born in Seoul, South Korea. His father was a businessman. He has a younger sister, Lee Eun-hee, who was Miss Korea in 1997. He graduated from Hanyang University with a major in French Literature and the Graduate School of Chung-Ang University with a major in Theater and Cinematography.
South Korean actor Lee Byung-hun, left, and director Jon M. Chu, right, pose for photographers with Japanese actress Nanao upon arrival for the Japan premiere of their latest film "GI Joe 3D Retaliation" in Tokyo Monday, May 27, 2013. (AP Photo/Shizuo Kambayashi)
The wedding of celebrity couple Lee Min-jung and Lee Byung-hun might be come sooner rather than expected, as the actress reportedly caught the bouquet at her close friend’s wedding.
Lee Min-jung, 31, attended her friend’s wedding in Seoul on May 25 together with her 43-year-old boyfriend Lee Byung-hun, one of Korea’s best-known actors, with two Hollywood movies under his belt.
The two actors confirmed their relationship last year, raising anticipation for another star couple.
The actress’ agency, however, said Monday that “the two actors do not have any specific plans for marriage yet.”
Lee Byung Hun arrived in Japan to participate in the GI Joe Retaliation Japan Premiere plus a 4-city stage greeting and various promotion activities with Director Jon Chu.
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