NPR : News

Filed Under:

Rain Reports For Duty: South Korean Pop Star Starts Military Service

By: Mark Memmott // October 11, 2011
comments

Even this blogger isn't old enough (just barely, though) to have been around when Elvis Presley went into the Army in March, 1958.

But it's well known that was a huge deal.

Now there's this close comparison from Asia:

South Korean pop star Rain today reported for his mandatory 21-month tour of duty with his nation's army.

The Korea Times says the 29-year-old singer and actor "smiled throughout [a] farewell event thanking his fans for the love they have given him over the past 10 years. More than 1,000 people crowded near the base [in Gyeonggi Province] to see Rain on his last day as a civilian, waiting for two and a half hours for him to appear."

"Thank you for coming," said Rain (real name: Jung Ji-hoon). "I'm sorry to make such a fuss while leaving. I'll be back from my duties soon."

How big is Rain? Not only does he sell millions of songs, fill concert halls and have a budding film career, he keeps winning the reader poll in the Time 100.

And he has a high-profile "enemy" — Comedy Central's Stephen Colbert (our apologies for Stephen's one slightly risque word).

Copyright 2011 National Public Radio. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.

Arts & Culture

NPR

A Read Down Memory Lane: Lessons From Your Former Self

Writings from childhood — cards, stories and other notes — can hide for decades, like time capsules tucked away in boxes, old bedrooms, attics and journals. Writer Jim Sollisch talks about how old thank you notes from his youth foreshadowed his adult life.

Food

NPR

Inside A Tart Cherry Revival: 'Somebody Needs To Do This!'

The revival is partly based on the humble sour fruit's growing reputation as a superfood. And in Michigan, a scientist is on a quest to introduce a whole new world of hardier, tastier tart cherries by breeding American trees with ancestral varieties from Eastern Europe.

Politics

NPR

Srinivasan's Confirmation First For D.C. Circuit In 7 Years

The partisan war over judicial nominees has accelerated in recent years. It took nearly a year to win Senate confirmation for Sri Srinivasan to the important federal appeals court for the District of Columbia, though he had no formal opposition.

Technology

NPR

3-D Printer Makes Life-Saving Splint For Baby Boy's Airway

A 3-D printer is being credited with helping to save an Ohio baby's life, after doctors "printed" a tube to support a weak airway that caused him to stop breathing. The innovative procedure has allowed Kaiba Gionfriddo, of Youngstown, Ohio, to stay off a ventilator for more than a year.

Leave a Comment

Help keep the conversation civil. Please refer to our Terms of Use and Code of Conduct before posting your comments.