Chung Wonho (, ; born October 22, 1980) is a South Korean comedian and television personality, born in

Jeddah Jeddah ( ), alternatively transliterated as Jedda, Jiddah or Jidda ( ; , ), is a List of governorates of Saudi Arabia, governorate and the largest city in Mecca Province, Saudi Arabia, and the country's second largest city after Riyadh, located ...

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

, and raised in

Amman Amman ( , ; , ) is the capital and the largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of four million as of 2021, Amman is Jordan's primate city and is the largest city in the Levant ...

, Jordan, to a

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

n father and

Vietnamese Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Overseas Vietnamese, Vietnamese people living outside Vietna ...

mother. Although raised in an East/Southeast Asian household, Wonho was given an Arab upbringing, acquiring proficiency in five languages, including native

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

and fluent

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

. He graduated from Jordan's

Applied Science Private University Applied Science Private University (ASU) is a private institution of higher education located in Jordan. Founded in 1989 and officially inaugurated in October 1991, ASU operates under the Arab International Company for Education and Investment. A ...

in 2004. He currently lives and works in

Dubai Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...

UAE The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a federal elective monarchy made up of seven emirates, with Abu Dhabi serving as i ...

Information

Chung's comedy career began in 2007 when he toured with the Axis of Evil comedy tour. Chung covered the red carpet at the

Dubai International Film Festival The Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF, ) was the largest film festival in the Arab world, Arab region. With particular emphasis on showcasing Arab cinema, Arab, Asian cinema, Asian, and African cinema, it also helped to develop industry a ...

in 2008 where he interviewed the likes of

Goldie Hawn Goldie Jeanne Hawn (born November 21, 1945) is an American actress, producer, dancer, and singer. She achieved stardom and acclaim for playing lighthearted comedic roles in film and television. In a career spanning six decades, she has received ...

and

Danny Glover Danny Glover ( ; born July 22, 1946) is an American actor, producer, and political activist. Over his career he has received List of awards and nominations received by Danny Glover, numerous accolades including the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian A ...

and in 2009 as well where he interviewed Indian film actor

Amitabh Bachchan Amitabh Bachchan (; 11 October 1942) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi cinema. He is often considered one of the greatest, most accomplished and commercially successful actors in the history of Indian cinema.* * * * * With a cinemati ...

and numerous Arabic celebrities. In December 2010, Chung hosted the award ceremony and closing gala of the Dubai International Film Festival In 2009, Chung covered the red carpet at the inaugural

Doha Tribeca Film Festival The Doha Tribeca Film Festival (DTFF) was an annual five-day film festival that was organised from 2009 to 2012 to promote Arab and international films, and to develop a sustainable film industry in Qatar. One of Qatar's largest entertainment event ...

Qatar Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Geography of Qatar, Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares Qatar–Saudi Arabia border, its sole land b ...

where he interviewed actors; Sir

Ben Kingsley Sir Ben Kingsley (born Krishna Pandit Bhanji; 31 December 1943) is an English actor. He has received List of awards and nominations received by Ben Kingsley, various accolades throughout Ben Kingsley on screen and stage, his career spanning fi ...

Jeffrey Wright Jeffrey Wright (born December 7, 1965) is an American actor. His accolades include a Primetime Emmy Award, a Tony Award, and a Golden Globe Award, in addition to a nomination for an Academy Award. Wright began his career in theater, where he g ...

Patricia Clarkson Patricia Davies Clarkson (born December 29, 1959) is an American actress. She has starred in numerous leading and supporting roles in a variety of films ranging from independent film features to major film studio productions. Her accolades incl ...

Alexander Siddig Siddig el-Fadil (born 21 November 1965) is a British actor and director, known professionally as Alexander Siddig. Siddig is best known for his roles as Dr. Julian Bashir in the television series '' Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'', former terrori ...

and film director

Mira Nair Mira Nair (born 15 October 1957) is an Indian-American filmmaker based in New York City. Her production company is Mirabai Films. Among her films are '' Mississippi Masala'', '' The Namesake'', the Golden Lion–winning '' Monsoon Wedding'', ...

. In April 2010, the

Korea Tourism Organization The Korea Tourism Organization (KTO; ) is an organization of the Republic of Korea (South Korea) under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. It is commissioned to promote the country's tourism industry. The KTO was established in 1962 ...

appointed Wonho Chung as a Goodwill Ambassador for tourism Korea. Wonho hosted the Middle East Gala ceremony for the World Travel Awards in 2010 and in 2011. Chung hosted a show titled "Inside Asia" as part of the AFC Asian Cup coverage on

Al-Kass Sports Channel Alkass Sports Channels () is a group of eleven sports channels that are broadcast 24/7 from Qatar. Its official name is ''Al Dawri wal Kass'' (), since it was initially launched to broadcast domestic football in Qatar. The eleven channels of Alk ...

which took place in the hosting nation, Qatar. Chung also served as a judge on Sama Dubai TV's reality show "Al Fursa" in 2010-2011 which was an open platform talent show for various talents from different nationalities. In June 2011, Chung went to South Korea to film a mini documentary titled Shouf Korea (see "visit" Korea) which was a joint collaboration between the Korean Tourism Organization and Dubai based channel

Al Aan TV Al Aan or Alaan TV () is a pan-Arab infotainment satellite television station based in Dubai Media City, United Arab Emirates. History and Profile Al Aan broadcasts from Dubai Media City. Al Aan TV is free-to-air at Arab Satellite Communication ...

to be broadcast on the latter. In 2014, Chung appeared on the popular Egyptian show El Bernameg ("The Program") hosted by the satirist

Bassem Youssef Bassem Raafat Mohamed Youssef (born 22 March 1974) is an Egyptian-American comedian, television host, and former surgeon. Beginning his career with ''The B+ Show'' (2011), which was inspired by his experiences during the 2011 Egyptian Revolutio ...

. Starting in 2015 and continuing into 2016, Wonho hosted the Arabic travel program "Wonho Around the World" on Al Araby TV, visiting his parents' homelands of South Korea and Vietnam, as well as Tokyo, Japan, Hong Kong and Macau, Shanghai and Beijing, China, Dubai, London, and Switzerland among others.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chung, Won Ho South Korean male comedians Living people Entertainers from Amman Naturalized citizens of Jordan South Korean people of Vietnamese descent South Korean expatriates in Jordan South Korean expatriates in the United Arab Emirates 1980 births Saudi Arabian people of Vietnamese descent Jordanian people of Vietnamese descent Saudi Arabian people of Korean descent Jordanian people of Korean descent Saudi Arabian people of South Korean descent Jordanian people of South Korean descent Saudi Arabian emigrants to Jordan Applied Science Private University alumni