Song Il Gook is a popular actor who has become even more popular due to some of his more adorable family members. But this week he had to apologize for the actions of another family member, his wife.
The actor was so popular due to his roles in the 2006 drama "Jumong" and the 2004 drama "Emperor of the Sea" that he was invited to Korea's Blue House to dine with heads of state. But his popularity got an unexpected additional boost when his non-identical triplets became variety show stars. The triplets were born in 2012 and are named Dae Han, Min Guk and Man Se.
Song Il Gook and his three young sons currently appear on the variety show "Return of Superman," also known as "Superman Is Back." The show features actors and their young children. Celebrity dads are left alone to care for their kids while their wives get to take a break from parenting. The wives leave a list of chores that the dads must accomplish. Song Il Gook and his triplets quickly became audience favorites.
But the actor has also endured his share of controversy due to his relatives and the latest incident took place this week. The actor had to apologize for a post that his wife made on Facebook. The post referred to a dispute that took place in 2009. It concerned one of Song's road managers. Rumors said that the actor registered his road manager as a political aide and that the manager was paid out of taxpayer money.
Song's wife Jung Seung Yeon commented on the six-year-old allegations and did so in a way that upset netizens. She said that the manager worked as her mother-in-law's intern before becoming Song Il Gook's road manager. Her mother is a politician, Kim Eul Dong of the Saenuri Party. Interns are free to take part-time jobs and when Song suddenly had no road manager, he decided to hire his mother-in-law's intern on a part-time basis. Song paid the intern for the time that he employed him.
Netizens took exception to Jung Seung Yeon's choice of words when she commented on Facebook. They found her comments demeaning to critics and the road manager, who she referred to as a "mere part-timer."
Song Il Gook issued a public apology for his wife's comments. Through his agency, he said that his wife has posted her comment when she was angry and her choice of words was regrettable. He also stated as much on Twitter.