Clara Lee (; born 14 January 1985), birth name Lee Sung-min () and better known by her
mononym
A mononym is a name composed of only one word. An individual who is known and addressed by a mononym is a mononymous person.
A mononym may be the person's only name, given to them at birth. This was routine in most ancient societies, and remains ...
Clara, is an actress and model based in South Korea.
Career
Clara made her entertainment debut under her birth name in 2005 and starred in her first film in 2009, ''
Five Senses of Eros''. In January 2012, she adopted Clara as her
stage name
A stage name or professional name is a pseudonym used by performers, authors, and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. The equivalent concept among writers is called a ''nom de plume'' (pen name). Some performers ...
, which was announced at a press conference for the
drama series, ''
Take Care of Us, Captain''. Reasons given for the name change included that her birth name, Sung-min, was "male-sounding" and that her English name had always been Clara.
In May 2013, Clara became an overnight sensation online after throwing a
ceremonial first pitch in a professional baseball game dressed in form-fitting leggings. She has since been hailed as an up-and-coming star and a
sex symbol. In September 2013, Clara drew criticism from South Korean
netizen
The term ''netizen'' is a portmanteau of the English words ''internet'' and ''citizen'', as in a "citizen of the net" or "net citizen". It describes a person actively involved in online communities or the Internet in general. s for apparently contradicting herself on television by saying she liked to eat chicken and drink beer in one program and stating the contrary in another. Consequently, she closed down her
Twitter
Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
and
Facebook
Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...
accounts. Afterwards, she again played supporting roles in the television series ''
Goddess of Marriage'' (2013) and ''
Emergency Couple'' (2014), followed by a leading role in the sex comedy film ''
Casa Amor: Exclusive for Ladies'' (2015).
In December 2014, she filed a lawsuit against her agency
Polaris Entertainment to
nullify her contract on the grounds of being
sexually harassed by its president Lee Kyu-tae; Polaris denied those allegations and countered that Clara had been
blackmail
Blackmail is a criminal act of coercion using a threat.
As a criminal offense, blackmail is defined in various ways in common law jurisdictions. In the United States, blackmail is generally defined as a crime of information, involving a thr ...
ing the agency to end her contract which is due to expire in 2018. In July 2015, prosecutors cleared Clara of the blackmail allegations and
indicted Lee for making threats against her that implied physical violence.
On 18 September 2015 Clara dropped her suit against Polaris Entertainment, bringing their legal battle to an end.
Personal life
Clara is the daughter of singer Lee Seung-kyu, a former member of the
bilingual
Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. When the languages are just two, it is usually called bilingualism. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolin ...
band,
Koreana. She was born in Switzerland, educated in the United States, and now based in South Korea.
Clara is a British citizen.
In January 2019, she announced her marriage to a Korean-American businessman.
Filmography
Film
Television series
Variety show
Music video
Awards and nominations
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Clara
1985 births
British female models
British film actresses
British television actresses
British voice actresses
British people of South Korean descent
El Camino College alumni
Living people
South Korean female models
South Korean film actresses
South Korean television actresses
South Korean voice actresses
British expatriates in South Korea