SG: Ha Ji Won's double loses 8kg in two weeks for the role

Not quite new news...I admit, I was too lazy to translate -_-" But better late than never, right? Also have a cute Binnie article coming up, so please anticipate it! (gah, I sound like some actor giving a speech about their upcoming show).

8kg may not sound that impressive alongside Yoon Sang Hyun's 10 kg, but two! weeks! That means this lady here lost 4kg in 7 days! Holey moley! Is that even humanly possible?

In Secret Garden, actress Ha Ji Won may be a stuntwoman, but the real stunts were performed another stuntwoman. And this woman is 22-year-old stuntwoman Yoo Mi-jin who has appeared in KBS 2TV's Hello recently (or maybe not so recent >_<).

The theme of the program for that day was "Occupation". She said that as a stunt double working in the industry, she has develop a "shan't lose to the dudes" attitude, and no matter what she has to do more, and do better. 


She continued, "At that time, the martial arts director told her to lose weight, more specifically a 26cm reduction on the waist line...I thought I mustn't lose this opportunity to shoot, so within 2 weeks I lost 8kg."


The MC of the show expressed a high level of interest in this; asked her to reveal a thing on two, or a reproduction of Ha Ji Won and Hyun Bin's famous scenes in Secret Garden. 


Yoo Mi-jin lived up to expectations; she wowed with her martial arts moves and even did SG's famous sit-up scene. 




Via Baidu's SG

Parody Of The Day: SG Never Dies

NEVER, y'hear me? A fan posted this on Kim Heechul's twitter account; my special thanks to Hee Joo Won (don't ask) for the Ko-Chi translation:

Many of you here might recognize the SG tracksuit (now officially known as Blue Spangle), but if you don't know what's that funny looking mantou-face is, it's Heechul's avatar on his twitter account, is what any E.L.F would be happy to inform you. 


Isn't it FREAKINGBRILLIANT? Can't breathe - can't stop laughing. Funny what a few strokes of blue and yellow on Paint can do. 


It's not Kim Joo Won, it's Kim Joo Won, geddit?




Via Baidu's Secret Garden

What? You Think I Was Kidding When I Said It Was Italian?

If your tracksuit costs less than 1000 USD, it's a fake. And it's not The Tracksuit. It's Blue Spangle, ahem. And lemme introduce to you the rest of the churinings:

Meet the Blue Spangle, Leopard, Black Flower and Gold Stud. At 1.2 million won each, that makes each one of them costs approx 1000 USD with the exception of Gold Stud staying true to it's name, being the most pricey at 1 250 USD (1.38 million won).

Dubbed as "Project <Secret Garden>" by the official label yelocloc which has finalized its copyright of the tracksuits' designs on 29th December and it is only exclusively sold online at the moment. 

On the tracksuit that started it all, it may have not been sewn by italian ajusshis, but it's in fact made from Italian cloth (and I have a growing suspicion that Black Flower is made from French lace). 

But what makes it pricey is none of the above, it's the *bling bling*. It's the GOLD on the label, honey. 

A sportswear so precious, 500 customers who buys this will get a certificate that proves that the training is indeed plated with genuine 18k gold. A close up: 

Knowing this, who'd dare to mock your fashion sense again? Show 'em Binnie!

Actually, you don't even have to do this 'cause the labels on the outside :D

Via Baidu's Secret Garden and yelocloc.com

Secret Garden: A CNY Present

Continuing my tradition since last Christmas, I'll be posting another SG parody vid using Chinese New Years as an excuse (let's be honest: I'm still not quite over Joo Won or SG yet).


Linky to the video will be after this, first up here are pics of SJ's Eunhyuk doing yet another parody from our beloved show. As any Gardener would know, it's the two signature scenes from the drama, The Sit-ups and the (infamous) Bed Scene #1:

LMAO.

Anyway, about the Joo Won parody: It's actually a rather simple set of scenes put together, but what made it (sorta) funny was the BG music, you might've recognize the Crazy Frog/ Annoying Orange-like song. 

There's an interesting story behind this song, dubbed by Chinese netizens as the "Toss Onion Song". The song was featured in a scene in the anime Bleach, where the character was twirling a leek while singing a scat section of this traditional Finnish folk song, levan Polkka by four-member Finnish group Loituma. 

The song debuted in 1996 but it wasn't until 2006 that song became a worldwide phenomenon, due to that episode in Bleach. 

That concludes our little background story on the BG song, watch the Joo Wonnie vid here:

http://www.tudou.com/programs/view/NKE66G-qYww/ 

Gong Xi Fa Cai everyone! 

Long Live SG: Two And A Half Updates

Well, can't really say all these is SG related but it is related to the SG family, so read up, folks!


One: Binnie Goes To Berlin

...for BIFF (Berlin International Film Festival) for Come Rain, Come Shine. Well, no surprise there but first he has to obtain special permit to do so since these are overseas activities. In this regard, the ROK Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will be submitting a letter of recommendation to the MMA (Military Manpower Administration) justifying the reasons for him to go abroad from the 15 to the 23rd of March.


So if all goes well he'll be flying to Berlin on the 15th and attend the festival's official events, media interviews etc. on the 17th. He'll be entering the military on March 7 to undergo 5 weeks of basic training in Pohang-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do before a specific assignment is to be assigned. 


Two: Lee Jong Suk Gets Accepted Into Honkuk University 

Lee Jong Suk (23) will be enrolling in the university's Film Department as a [Year] 2011 student. He participated in the entrance exam last November and it is reported that the university's targeted enrollment was 2220 students out of 21 268 people who took part in the exam.


And a Half: Not a ground breaking news...except there will be OSKA socks!!! 
Nevermind the Oska is spelled differently. If I have this I don't think I would want to wear shoes, 'cause I'll be busy showing off me socks!

Via Baidu's Secret Garden

SG Gets A Special (again?)

(Updated!)

We're Lying There Just Like A Line - Yozoh (feat. Lee Sang Soon)

A certain friend at Baidu said it best: "Long live SG!" Not to be confused with the previous one that came out on Saturday, this special will be coming out in time for the Lunar New Year. A quick check at the Chinese calendar (yes, us Chinese have a special calendar of our own) shows that it will be on the 2nd day of CNY. No time details have been announced yet. Schedule is as follows:

Secret Garden Spring Series will be airing on the 4th of February in two parts: 
Part I at 14:00*
Part II at 15:20*
*All time quoted in KST. The whole broadcast is approx 2 and a half hours, from 2.00-4.40 PM.

Meanwhile, more stills have been released:

Oh, so it wasn't Ha Ji Won holding his hand. It's some lucky gal:

Hold my hand, oppa!

YSH oppa is also here:

Hot! *fans self*

Via SBS's Secret Garden Official Website

Writer Kim On My Princess (And hellochloe on Dream High)

SG's writer, Kim Eun Sook cheers for MBC's My Princess.

The four main actor's collective signatures.

She has tweeted recently on the 23rd at 7.00 PM: 

"My Princess is the work of one of my most cherished hoobae. I'm now serving coffee for this hoobae. Hope you guys have a fun time watching."

The hoobae she is talking about is her assistant writer way back from her Lovers In Paris, Lovers and On Air days, among other works.

Binnie's!

A fan has also asked her on her next project after Secret Garden. To which she gave a sneaky and interesting reply:

"You guys, really! It has only been a week since my show ended. Right now I just want to be with the general public and enjoy watching dramas. My Princess...they say this show is very interesting?"

Okay we get your message loud and clear Writer-nim. Stop hovering like a lovesick idiot over SG and move to MP, you say? I don't know but I'm kinda dreaming more about Dream High recently. 

Park Jin Young and his idols from JYP? (I have no idea who they are)

I love everyone there (sans Baek Hee, I still hate you): From the teachers, Jin Man that wacko fella (who could tell he's really a corporate figure, the man behind JYP Entertainment? He should have been acting all along, I say) and the father figure to the children, Oh Hyuk (he should be getting some lovin' soon: the Popular Teacher has something for him, me thinks). 


And how can one forget the main trio: Sam Dong, Jin Gook and Hye Mi. Boy this will be the toughest love triangle ever since Marry Me, MaryWhat Happened In Bali.  

Ms. Sushi, IU has made me a real fan. You can tell this girl's got real talent, not the idol cultivated kind. I see her going places. 

And this maybe the only show I'm not holding a grudge against for not showing a preview afterwards. I was practically drooling over Jason's performance/ practice in the dance room (Episode 6's ending).


See what I mean by loving everyone? All I'm saying is, MP's got tough competition, hehe.

Ha Ji Won: "Tang Wei Watches SG Too"

Ha Ji Won recently attended Prada's Spring/Summer 2011 Collection in Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing. She was the only Korean star who has been invited for the event, alongside Chinese actresses Tang Wei, Gong Li, Maggie Cheung and other stars.


Ha Ji Won said: "That day I met Tang Wei for the first time, she said she watched Secret Garden. When I said I knew Late Autumn will be released in Korea, she replied it would be in February. She was very warm, like a friend." She expressed her regret at not being able to chat with her further: "The fashion show was held in a relatively dark room, furthermore we sat separately from each other. We did meet again in the crowded elevator, but there was no time to chat about the drama or partnering with Hyun Bin and such."


Although Secret Garden has not officially aired in China, it is available through various channels (hc: such as *cough* Tudou *cough*) and has gained nationwide attention in China. She laughed and said: "I had no idea Secret Garden was so popular in China. It's similar to Korea, so I'm surprised. Compared to me, they're more obsessed  about the role." She went on: "The Chinese fans have been calling me by my name in the drama to take pictures. They would also send fruits to the hotel for me to eat when I'm tired, they have been very attentive. The shooting for the television series have been tiring, but through this visit to China, I'm very happy."

Writer Kim On SG's Finale

First, A 'lil Cute Of The Day:

 Sigh. If only we could be woken up like this every morning.

Writer-nim: What? No extension?!

At SG's finale party that was held on the 16th in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, our beloved Writer Kim gave a toast and said in a jest, "I did not even receive a single proposal for an extension, (I) feel rather down." 

An individual that was present during that scene said, "Writer Kim was laughing as she said those words (that she was sad she didn't receive an extension proposal). Although I don't know where she really stands on this matter, but she must be joking, I think."


Since November of last year, the show has already set the no. of episodes it will air - twenty. In order to keep the no. of episodes within that target, towards the end the shooting the editing have been particularly rough, although it the finale did acheive an all-time high of 35.2%


However, despite the popularity of the show, the question was not whether there was going to be an extension or not, but rather it was the problem of the actor's availability.


During the production of the last episode of Secret Garden, there was a constant cacophony of noise on the set, which goes to show how busy the SG staff were in order to churn the episode out on time. Furthermore, Hyun Bin is cramped with work even after the finale - excluding his army enlistment on the 3rd of March. 


A related personnel mentioned, "The reason why the extension was brought up is because the show has left out many mysteries unsolved."


For example, the scream Joo Won heard in Jeju-do and Joo Won's sister inexplicable disappearance. Due to the rush to broadcast the last episode, these minute details were left out.


Meanwhile, Writer Kim is having some well deserved rest at Jecheon-si, Chungcheongbuk-do.


Chloe Says: Haha, I'm pretty sure what was on the crew and the main actor's minds as she said those words were: "HELL NO! You kidding me? I wanna sleep!" LOL somewhere along those lines, me thinks.


Via Baidu' Secret Garden

SG's Bed Scene: Behind-The-Scenes

[To mamajoni who wanted to know more about the bed scene, sorry to put a wet blanket to the steamy bed scene, but as a certain show said it best: You Asked For It -haha!]

You know, I've been thinking about SG's finale...and if I were to change one part it would be Sohn Ye Jin's cameo. This is pretty shocking for me too, as she's one of my fav kstars in the industry -and happy to see her doing fine, in fact hotter and wittier than she ever was in Personal Taste), but I was (irrationally) mad at her for taking away what could be Joo Won's sister and Action School's director's romantic development. Wouldn't it be better if, say, she wanted Ra Im to be her stuntwoman or her co-star instead? 


Instead, Jong Soo is now reduced to a flubbering idiot and sister is nowhere in sight. *Sigh* Don't mind me, just one of my many rants. Anyway, back to the bed/ implied sex scene:

Ha Ji Won talked about some things that were going on behind the camera in SBS's Secret Garden Special that broadcasted on the 22nd. In the program, she revealed, "The shooting schedule was very tight, resulting in a group of actors suffering from the lack of sleep." Which in turn resulted in a sleeping beauty err, Binnie. What was a "sweet love scene" to the audience was in fact a "sleeping scene" (refer to the pic above). Although Ha Ji Won was deeply in character, Hyun Bin already drifted off into Dreamland. 

She said: "In the scene I was required to open my eyes wide (as I was shocked), but as I was in deeply acting, Hyun Bin was by my side, sleeping."

According to ratings by AGB Nielsen Media Research, The Story Behind Secret Garden came up to 17.9%, the highest among programs that aired in the same period.

Via Baidu's Secret Garden

SG: A Tribute To Everyone Who Has Ever Worn The Bling Bling

Yes, even you doggie. Among the people below are 2AM's Changmin, the awesomerific Kim Gab Soo as Joo Won in MBC's sitcom All My Love, Baby brothers uljjang (huh there's such thing ?) Mason and Mavin (which one is it? dunno...)

No doubt about it, the best is still the Bling Bling. No tracksuit comes close!

Hyun Bin Goes On A Talk Show

After Secret Garden ended, for the first time Binnie goes on tvN's variety show, Taxi. Taxi is sort of like a talk show, and by sort of I mean they do chat like in a talk show, but instead of the studio it's done LIVE in a taxi where the host drives and the guests are passengers. Hmm...didn't they say that while driving we should focus on nothing but that? How is anyone suppose to to do that while Binnie is right beside them? 


Taxi is hosted by Gong Hyung Jin (Dalja's Spring, Runaway) and Lee Young Ja (the one wearing The Bling Bling - and it's not the dog). Binnie has been buddies with Gong Hyung Jin since their baseball playing days, and his appearance on this show is a testament to that. 


When the photos from the program has come to light recently, Hyun Bin was teased: "Kim Joo Won's face is only half of Lee Young Ja's." Heh, whose isn't. Lately, I would say his face is comparable to Kim Jae Wook's.

Via Baidu's Secret Garden 

SG Steamy Parody

Oooh, this post have been (deliciously) upped. Dear dc genius, please tell me who you are, 'cause I wanna make banners for you. Your fan foreva, hellochloe.

The following post is restricted to LOEL Department Store Staff. Err, perhaps that is a wee bit restrictive, so let it be for the eyes of die-hard Gardeners only:

Given their love of books, I betcha the triplets will be avid readers too^^

Probably the most decent photo of the lot:

PS must be man's most divine invention. Hallelujah for making the dreams of SG fans all around the world come true. 

You're not the only one blushing, sweetie.