The following is a list of notable Korean Americans, including original immigrants who obtained American citizenship and their American descendants.
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This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.
To be included in this list, the person must have a Wikipedia article showing they are Korean American or must have references showing they are Korean American and are notable.
Contents |
List
Art and design
- David Choe, an abstract artist
- Frank Cho, comic book artist (Spider-Man, The New Avengers), writer, and co-creator (Liberty Meadows)
- Doo-Ri Chung, fashion designer
- Peter Chung, animator, creator of cult animated TV series Æon Flux
- Derek Kirk Kim, cartoonist and author of critically acclaimed graphic novel "Same Difference and Other Stories"
- Nic Cha Kim, Founder of Gallery Row in Downtown Los Angeles
- Scott Kim, puzzlemaster, artist, computer game designer
- Yu Yeon Kim, Internationally renowned, independent curator of art.
- Jae Lee, comic book artist (Namor the Sub-Mariner, Inhumans)
- Jim Lee, best-selling comic book artist (X-Men, Batman, Superman) and co-creator (Gen¹³, WildC.A.T.s); co-founder of Image Comics
- Lela Lee (1974 - ) actress and cartoonist, creator of the comic strip and animated cartoons Kim, the Angry Little Asian Girl and Angry Little Girls[1]
- Greg Pak, writer, director, actor (Robot Stories)
- Nam June Paik, Korean-born artist; father of Video Art
- Andy Park, comic book artist (Tomb Raider, X-Men)
- Peter Shin, a director of Family Guy
- Peter Sohn, an animator at Pixar Animation Studios
- Amy Sol, a contemporary artist based out of Las Vegas, Nevada[2]
- Peter Williams, CEO Department of Design, Inc. / Webmaster (Dean Guitars, Eagle Rock Entertainment)
- Tommy Yune, comic book writer/artist (Speed Racer, Robotech) and animation director (Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles)
Business and economics
- Wendy Lee Gramm, economics professor, former chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and wife of former Senator Phil Gramm
- David J. Kim, founder of C2 Education, named one of the top 30 young entrepreneurs, by Entrepreneur Magazine.
Education and academics
- Jaegwon Kim, William Herbert Perry Faunce Professor of Philosophy at Brown University
- Sung-Mo "Steve" Kang, Chancellor of University of California, Merced and former professor of electrical and computer engineering at various institutions.
- Jim Yong Kim, 17th president of Dartmouth College as of July 2009.
- Harold Hongju Koh, Dean of Yale Law School
Entertainment
- Philip Ahn, actor
- Jessica Anderson (actress), actress
- Nicole Bilderback, actress
- Moon Bloodgood, actress
- Johnny Yong Bosch, actor best known as Adam Park in Power Rangers.
- Steve Byrne, comedian, actor
- Theresa Hak Kyung Cha, author, video/filmmaker
- Timothy Chang, comedian-actor
- Henry Cho, comedian-actor
- John Cho, actor who appeared in the American Pie franchise and as star of Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle. He is also a singer for the group called Left of zed
- Margaret Cho, comedian and former star of the television sitcom All American Girl
- Smith Cho, actress
- Justin Chon, actor
- Alexandra Bokyun Chun, actress, filmmaker
- Daniel Chun, writer, co-producer (The Simpsons)
- Jamie Chung, actress
- Lee Isaac Chung, director[3]
- Philip W. Chung, playwright, founder and Artistic Director of Lodestone Theatre Ensemble
- Morena Corwin, model, Playboy playmate September, 1992. Fantastic in all ways
- Jon Gosselin, father of sextuplets and a subject of the reality show, Jon & Kate Plus 8
- Bong Soo Han, "Father of American Hapkido", best known for his role as evil Dr. Klahn in 1977 John Landis comedy The Kentucky Fried Movie
- Daniel Henney - model, actor in South Korea
- Brian Hirano, b-boy and dancer from Quest Crew[4], appeared on "America's Best Dance Crew"
- Gene Hong, producer, writer, and actor on Wild 'N Out
- Chanel Iman, fashion model
- Ken Jeong, comedian, actor
- Joseph Kahn, music video and movie director
- Michael Kang, writer/director (The Motel (film), West 32nd)
- Sung Kang, actor (The Motel (film), Better Luck Tomorrow, The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift)
- Tim Kang, actor (The Mentalist)
- Daniel Dae Kim, actor
- Evan C. Kim, actor, best known for his role in the 1977 John Landis comedy The Kentucky Fried Movie
- Jacqueline Kim, actress
- Johnny Kim, a film actor, producer and director
- Victor Kim, b-boy and dancer from Quest Crew[5], appeared on "America's Best Dance Crew"
- Yunjin Kim, actress
- Yul Kwon, contestant on Survivor: Cook Islands
- Denyce Lawton, actress, model
- Becky Lee, contestant on Survivor: Cook Islands
- Bobby Lee, comedy actor for MADtv[6]
- Chris Chan Lee, filmmaker
- James Kyson Lee, actor
- Justin Lee (actor), actor
- Lela Lee, actress and cartoonist[1]
- Sung-Hi Lee, model who appears mostly in soft-core nude photoshoots[7]*
- Patricia Ja Lee, actress, best known as Cassie Chan in Power Rangers.
- Will Yun Lee, actor (Die Another Day)
- Masuimi Max, fetish model, contestant on Fear Factor
- Ursula Mayes, model for television show, "Deal or No Deal"
- Leonardo Nam, actor (The Perfect Score, The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift)
- Dennis Joseph O'neil, model and actor
- Sandra Oh, film and television actress
- Joy Osmanski, actress
- Lydia Paek, dancer from Quest Crew[8] and Boxcuttuhz, appeared on "America's Best Dance Crew"
- Ho Sung Pak, actor, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
- Grace Park, actress, Battlestar Galactica
- Linda Park, Korean-born actor (Enterprise)
- Steve Park, actor (In Living Color)
- Soon-Yi Previn, actress; wife of Woody Allen; adoptive daughter of Mia Farrow
- Lindsay Price, television actress
- Phillip Rhee, actor (Best of the Best movies), Tae Kwon Do and Hapkido master
- Cathy Shim, actress
- Eddie Shin, actor
- Kimora Lee Simmons, fashion model, author, and the president and Creative Director for Phat Fashions
- Sonja Sohn, actor
- James Sun, first runner-up, The Apprentice 6
- Brian Tee, actor (The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift)
- Cher Tenbush, model, actress Beauty and the Geek
- Natasha Yi, model
- Aaron Yoo, actor (Disturbia)
- Johnny Yune, comedian/actor (They Call Me Bruce?)
- Karl Yune, model and actor (Memoirs of a Geisha, Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid, brother of Rick Yune)
- Rick Yune, model and actor (Die Another Day, The Fast and the Furious)
- Yunjin Kim, actress, best known as Sun-Hwa Kwon in "Lost"
Journalism
- Virginia Cha, CNN News anchor
- JuJu Chang, ABC News anchor and reporter
- Alina Cho, CNN News correspondent
- Liz Cho, ABC News anchor and reporter
- James Kim, Former senior editor at CNET.
- Lee Ann Kim, anchor and reporter for KGTV and executive director of the San Diego Asian Film Festival
- Lisa Kim, NBC News News Anchor for NBC11
- Michael Kim, ESPN anchor
- Corina Knoll, Los Angeles Times reporter
- Suchin Pak, MTV News anchor and reporter
- Eunice Yoon, CNN News anchor
Literature
- See Korean American writers for a more extensive list
- Theresa Hak Kyung Cha, author of Dictee
- Leonard Chang, American-born writer
- Heinz Insu Fenkl, author
- Younghill Kang, author of East Goes West: The Making of an Oriental Yankee
- Suji Kwock Kim, author of Notes From The Divided Country
- Don Lee, author, editor of Ploughshares literary journal
- Linda Sue Park, American-born author; winner of the 2002 Newbery Medal for A Single Shard
Medicine and public health
- Dennis Choi, neuroscientist at Emory University, member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies, former Executive Vice President for Neuroscience at Merck, former Chairman of the Department of Neurology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.
- Howard Choi, a spinal cord injury specialist
- Jim Yong Kim, Francois Xavier Bagnoud Professor Health and Human Rights at Harvard University and former Director of HIV/AIDS at the World Health Organization and soon to be the 17th president of Dartmouth College.
- Howard Koh, Harvey V. Fineberg Professor of the Practice of Public Health and Associate Dean for Public Health Practice at the Harvard School of Public Health and former Massachusetts Commissioner of Public Health.
Music
- Ahn Trio, Juilliard-educated classical music trio, featured in print and television ads for Gap[9]
- Danny Ahn of g.o.d, rapper based in South Korea
- Priscilla Ahn, alternative/folk singer
- Amerie, R&B singer-songwriter, actress[10]
- Sarah Chang, classical violinist and recipient of the Avery Fisher Prize.[11]
- Trish Doan, Former bass player for Canadian metal band Kittie
- Meg Frampton, musician, older sister of Dia Frampton
- Dia Frampton, musician, younger sister of Meg Frampton
- Joe Hahn, founding member of alternative rock band Linkin Park, multi-platinum and Grammy Award-winner[12]
- Hei-Kyung Hong, soprano with The Metropolitan Opera Company
- Park Joon Hyung, actor and singer of g.o.d, rapper based in South Korea
- Stephanie Hwang of Girls' Generation, singer based in South Korea.
- Danny Im of 1TYM, R&B singer based in South Korea.
- Yuna Ito, J-pop singer and actress; also of half-Japanese descent.
- Brian Joo of Fly to the Sky, R&B singer based in South Korea.
- Jessica Jung of Girls' Generation, singer based in South Korea. Sister of
F(x) 's Krystal Jung. - Krystal Jung of
F(x) , singer based in South Korea. Sister of Girls' Generation's Jessica Jung. - Crystal Kay, J-pop (Zainichi Korean) singer[13]
- David Kim, concertmaster of the Philadelphia Orchestra
- Earl Kim, pianist and composer; Harvard University professor
- Paul Kim, classical pianist.
- Soovin Kim, violinist from New York City.
- John Myung, bass guitar player of progressive metal band Dream Theater[14]
- Karen O, lead singer of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs
- Ken Oak, vocalist of Ken Oak Band
- Ok Taecyeon of Korean boy band 2PM
- Park Jaebeom of Korean boy band 2PM
- Joon-Hyung Park of g.o.d, rapper based in South Korea
- Lena Park, R&B singer[15]
- Mike Park, ska and punk musician, founder of Asian Man Records[16]
- Teddy Park of 1TYM, singer based in South Korea.
- Todd Park Mohr, lead vocals/guitars/keyboards/saxophone of Big Head Todd and the Monsters
- Susie Suh, singer-songwriter, signed with Epic Records[17]
- T, R&B singer based in South Korea
- Tim, R&B singer based in South Korea.
- Steve Seung-Jun Yoo, singer kicked out of South Korea
- Eugene Park, electric violinist in South Korea.
Politics and government
- Michelle Park Steel, California State Board of Equalization, elected to represent 8.5 million California taxpayers.
- Jun Choi, Mayor of Edison, New Jersey
- Dr. Steven Choi, Irvine, California City Councilmember and candidate for California State Assembly
- Judge Herbert Choy, appointed to the U.S Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and first Asian American appointed to the federal bench.
- Shinae Chun, Director of the Women’s Bureau, Department of Labor (George W. Bush administration)[18]
- Wendy Lee Gramm, chairwoman of the Regulatory Studies Program at George Mason University's Mercatus Center, the wife of former United States Senator Phil Gramm. Gramm held several positions in the Reagan Administration, including heading the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA).
- Hoon-Yung Hopgood, member of Michigan State House of Representatives, first Korean-American elected to public office in Michigan
- Young Woo Kang, policy advisor of the National Council on Disability of the U.S. White House in 2001
- Harry Kim, Mayor of Hawaii County
- Jay Kim, former Republican Congressman from California
- Harold Hongju Koh, Dean of Yale Law School and former Assistant Secretary of State during the Clinton administration (See below.)
- Ronald Moon, Chief Justice of the Hawai'i Supreme Court
- Angela E. Oh, attorney and social/political activist best known for her role as spokesperson for the Korean American community after the 1992 Los Angeles Riots and her position on President Bill Clinton's One America Initiative
- Paull Shin, Washington state senator; Korean adoptee
- Anna Song, Trustee on the Santa Clara County Office of Education.
- John Yoo, conservative Berkeley law professor and former Deputy Attorney General in the United States Department of Justice
- Sam Yoon, Boston City Councillor (2005-present), first Asian American to be elected to the position in the city.
Religion
- Hae Jong Kim, Bishop of the United Methodist Church
- Julius Nam, professor of religion at Loma Linda University School of Religion
Science and technology
- Jeong H. Kim, President of Bell Labs
- Peter S. Kim, President of Merck, former MIT-Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research biochemist, member of National Academy of Sciences.
- Benjamin Lee, theoretical physicist
- Mark L. Polansky, NASA astronaut.
- Moo-Young Han, Physicist
Sports
- Cha Seung Baek, MLB player
- Eugene Chung, former NFL player, first Asian-American to be drafted in the 1st round, played offensive line.
- Hank Conger, baseball player
- Emily Cross, Olympic fencer
- Toby Dawson, Olympic skier. He won the bronze medal in men's freestyle skiing at the 2006 Torino Games.
- Marcus Demps, American football player
- Will Demps, American football player
- Vicky Hurst, professional golfer
- Anthony Kim, professional golfer
- Christina Kim, professional golfer
- Kevin Kim, tennis player
- Tae Man Kwon, Hapkido Grand Master - 9th Degree Black Belt
- Jeanette Lee pool player, nicknamed "The Black Widow" for her tendency to wear black[19]
- John Lee, former football player
- Sammy Lee, diver, first American-born Asian Olympic gold medalist
- Naomi Nari Nam, figure skater
- Angela Park, professional golfer
- Richard Park, a Korean-American NHL player
- BJ Penn, a mix martial artist
- Jhoon Rhee, Tae Kwon Do master and entrepreneur
- Daewon Song, Professional Skateboarder
- Terrmel Sledge, MLB player
- Sonya Thomas, aka "Black Widow," competitive eater, holder of 29 world titles.
- Hines Ward, football player, MVP of Super Bowl XL
- Michelle Wie, professional golfer
- Alex Yi, soccer player
- James Yun, Professional wrestler
Other
- Philip Jaisohn, first Korean to become an American citizen; first Korean American to receive an American medical degree
- Seung-Hui Cho
- Young-Oak Kim - First ethnic minority to lead a U.S. Army Battalion.
References
- ^ a b Lela Lee - [1] "I am Korean American. My parents immigrated and I was born here. I was actually the only daughter to be born in the U.S. I grew up in a suburb of Los Angeles, an hour east of Los Angeles. When I grew up, there were probably two other Asian families and we were made fun of. They would say, "Oh are you Chinese?" And I would say, "No." And they would say, "Are you Japanese?" And I would say, "No." And they would say, "Well, what are you then?" I would say, "I'm Korean" and they would say, "Where is that?" My parents were probably part of the first influx of Koreans to come to the U.S. at that time in the early 70s."
- ^ [2] "Art Space Talk: Amy Sol"
- ^ [3]"Twitch's Interview with Chung"
- ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quest_Crew
- ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quest_Crew
- ^ Bobby Lee - [4] "Korean King of Comedy: Bobby Lee"
- ^ Sung-Hi Lee - [5] "Korean hottie Sung Hi Lee"
- ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quest_Crew
- ^ [6] "The Korean classical piano trio “Ahn Trio,”"
- ^ [7] "Half Korean, half African-American, Amerie has lived all over the world..."
- ^ [8] "Meanwhile, under the subtitle “Becoming a World-Famous Violinist,” the unit also pays tribute to Korean-American violinist Sarah Chang..."
- ^ [9] "Hahn, a Korean American..."
- ^ [10] "Korean-American sensation Crystal Kay, are among Japan's best and most established..."
- ^ MetaKorean » Korean American Community » Interview with John Myung, Korean Poker Pro
- ^ [11] "Yet with Lena Park, and a selected number of Korean artists..."
- ^ Kaffeine Buzz - Music Reviews - Mike Park - North Hangook Falling
- ^ [12] "For Emerging Korean-American Singer Susie Suh, Songs are Like Tattoos"
- ^ Director's Bio - Shinae Chun, United States: Department of Labor, 2001, http://www.dol.gov/wb/SHINAE.htm, retrieved 2008-03-14
- ^ Jeanette Lee - [13] "As a first generation Korean American, Jeanette was raised in a bilingual household which stressed both Korean traditional values and the American ideal of opportunity."
External links
- KAPS - Korean American Professionals Society.
- Arirang - Interactive history of Korean Americans.
- KoreAm Journal - News, stories, and issues of Korean Americans nationwide.
- KorAmeLit.htm - Selection of Korean-American Literature
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
