Lee Eon (; 5 February 1981 – 21 August 2008) was a South Korean actor and model best known for his performance in the Korean television series '' Coffee Prince''.

Early life and career

Lee Eon was born Park Sang-min on 5 February 1981. Lee began practicing

ssireum ''Ssireum'' (; ) or Korean wrestling is a folk wrestling style and traditional national sport of Korea that began in the fourth century. In the modern form each contestant wears a belt (satba) that wraps around the waist and the thigh. The co ...

while in elementary school, going on to win gold medals at Korean national ssireum competitions in 1997 and 1998. As a freshman at university, he was inspired by

Cha Seung-won Cha Seung-won (; born June 7, 1970) is a South Korean actor, who began his career as an in-demand model (person), fashion model in the 1990s. Cha achieved stardom through the hit comedy films ''Kick the Moon'' (2001), ''Jail Breakers'' (2002), ' ...

to become a model, and after losing made his debut at a fashion show in

Busan Busan (), officially Busan Metropolitan City, is South Korea's second list of cities in South Korea by population, most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.3 million as of 2024. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economi ...

in 1999. His later fashion show appearances included the Seoul Fashion Artists Association Collection.Garcia, Cathy Rose A.
Actor Dies in Motorbike Accident
. ''

The Korea Times ''The Korea Times'' () is a daily English-language newspaper in South Korea. It is a sister paper of the ''Hankook Ilbo'', a major Korean language, Korean-language daily. It is the oldest active daily English-language newspaper in South Korea. ...

'', 21 August 2008. Retrieved on 19 November 2008. Lee branched out into acting, making his film debut in 2006;BRIEFLY: Model-turned-actor Lee Eon dies
. ''

Hancinema HanCinema () is an online South Korean movie and drama database created by Cédric Collemine during the summer of 2003 in Korea. It provides information related to Korean movies, television dramas, actors, and other related information. It is a ...

'', 22 August 2008; originally published by ''

The Korea Herald ''The Korea Herald'' () is a South Korean English-language daily newspaper founded in August 1953 and published in Seoul. The editorial staff is composed of Korean and international writers and editors, with additional news coverage drawn from i ...

''. Retrieved on 19 November 2008. he played a ssireum wrestler in '' Like a Virgin'', putting his skills to good use and helping lead actor

Ryu Deok-hwan Ryu Deok-hwan (; born June 12, 1987) is a South Korean actor. Career Ryu Deok-hwan began his career as a child actor on stage at age 6. Among his early TV drama appearances was a role on the popular ''Lifetime in the Country'' which he played ...

learn the moves. He later appeared in the 2007 hit

drama series In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular su ...

'' Coffee Prince'', and made his final appearance in KBS period drama ''

Strongest Chil Woo ''Strongest Chil Woo'' (), also known as ''Chilwu the Mighty'', is a 2008 South Korean historical drama that aired on KBS2. The titular hero is similar to a Zorro during the Joseon period. The drama served as the last project of actor Lee Eon ...

''.

Death and commemorations

Lee died in a motorcycle accident on 21 August 2008. He had been riding home from a party celebrating the airing of the last episode of ''

'', when his motorcycle hit the guardrail of an overpass in

Hannam-dong Hannam-dong () is a wealthy Dong (administrative division), ''dong'' (neighborhood) of Yongsan District, Seoul, South Korea. It has been portrayed continuously in South Korea's popular culture as an oasis of wealth and luxury, thus becoming the s ...

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

, at around 2 a.m. He died at the scene from a broken neck and was taken to the nearby

Soonchunhyang University Soonchunhyang University (SCH) is a private university in Asan, South Korea. Soonchunhyang University has a strength in the field of medicine, based on a Soonchunhyang University Hospitals. It ranked 9th among universities in South Korea, in ...

Hospital. Many of his colleagues attended his funeral, including

Gong Yoo Gong Ji-cheol (; born July 10, 1979), known professionally as Gong Yoo (), is a South Korean actor. He is best known for his starring roles in the television series ''Coffee Prince'' (2007), '' Guardian: The Lonely and Great God'' (2016–2017 ...

, his co-star in '' Coffee Prince'', who took leave from his

military service Military service is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, air forces, and naval forces, whether as a chosen job (volunteer military, volunteer) or as a result of an involuntary draft (conscription). Few nations, such ...

to hold Lee's memorial tablet in the procession to the grave site.Stars show up at Lee Eon's funeral
. ''

'', 23 August 2008. Retrieved on 19 November 2008.

Filmography

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* Motorcycle road incident deaths Road incident deaths in South Korea South Korean male film actors South Korean male television actors South Korean male models South Korean ssireum practitioners South Korean male sport wrestlers 1981 births 2008 deaths 21st-century South Korean sportsmen {{SouthKorea-actor-stub