BACKSTORY: It's 1992 in Los Angeles. The "Sa-I-Gu" (literally: 4-2-9 a.k.a. LA Riots a.k.a. Civil Uprising) The acquittal of a white LAPD officer for the arrest and brutal beating of African American Rodney King set off a firestorm (again) in the community. It was further fueled by the fatal shooting of 15 year old Latasha Harlins by Soon Ja Du, a 51-year-old Korean-American convenience store owner. His original sentence - 10 years in state prison - was changed to 5 years probation, 400 hours community service, $500 restitution and he funeral expenses. Considered extremely light, this resulted in a firestorm in Koreatown and neighborhood communities.
I'm at KCRW, National Public Radio's flagship station out of Santa Monica CA. With Mako and Oh Soon Tek as creative directors, and the participation of other Asian American actors, we're in the midst of producing Contemporary Japanese Short Stories, a series of 13 one-hour readings of English translations of 20th century short stories. I say to my boss, then Ruth Hirschman, "We should be doing a Korean series! So few people in LA know anything about Korean culture.") She said it would be considered after we get this done. (She loved Mishima Yukiyo's writing and knew little else about East Asian culture.)
THE PROJECT - CONTEMPORARY KOREAN SHORT STORIES: So, a few years later, with the flames and emotions still sizzling, I embarked to find Korean literature in English translation (almost none in any local bookstores, whether chains or independent). The California Council on the Humanities and Korea Foundation were supporting the effort, and I turned to the universities. It was extremely difficult to find English translations of 20th century stories beginning in 1994. (It didn't get better for over a decade. Koreana, a publication of Korea Foundation, would publish one story per quarter.) Peter Lee at UCLA was helpful in connecting me with translators. I was able to get books from a few academic presses, including University of Hawaii/Manoa. Robert Fulton chaired my Advisory Committee required by the Humanities grant.
We assembled our cast from the previous project and Soon Tek was the creative director. He selected Emily Kuroda to read Kim Tongni's classic Munyôdo / Portrait of a Shaman (sometimes translated as The Shaman Sorceress) about the clash of generations, cultures and worlds of humans and spirits. The broadcast was over 6 weeks in 1997.
I have Emily's permission to share it here.
A total of 15 stories (selected for their quality and ability to fit our time slots) totaled 8 hours in length. We were able to create 6 "one-hour" programs with original music, continuity (written by me), recorded (DAT) and broadcast from KCRW throughout Southern California; a few other public radio stations picked it up nationally. I hand-delivered a set of broadcast quality recordings to the KF director in 1997. When I visited the Korea Foundation Library about 10 years later they knew nothing about it. Likely because of shifting priorities ... from the Ministry of Education or Culture or ... who knows! I know the Korean Culture Center in Los Angeles had a set, too. CA Humanities likely has one.
A complete list of the stories and programs follows, including this which were not broadcast. Please contact me to discuss access to other recordings and texts of continuity. All rights acquired for original broadcasts (2) and reserved. Would be nice to have the life of this material extended.
A NOTE ABOUT SOON TEK He was such a generous, kind person. I always enjoyed our time together. When Kim Keumhwa came to visit me one year, I invited him to meet her. Easter and Soon Tek invited us to their home for dinner, The meeting was mutually enjoyed by all. More than a decade before Soon Tek passed away, he asked me to work with him to create a screenplay (rights protected at the WGAwest registry) adaptation. It covered Japanese colonial period, too!) I still have the work. He always wanted to play the main character. RIP Soon Tek.
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Executive Producer Lauren W. Deutsch Artistic Director Soon Tek Oh
The series includes 15 short works by Korea’s acclaimed masters and upcoming stars compiled into 8 independent programs. Some can be sub-divided into half hours to accommodate broadcast formats.
From time-worn rural villages to the emerging modern cities of a conquered and now divided nation, the soldiers and shopkeepers, the farmers, physicians and shamans tell the stories of a resilient, refined culture.
PROGRAMS
#1 Portrait of a Shaman: Newly converted to Christianity, a son anguishes over his mother’s indigenous faith and profession as the village shaman. (this took one hour itself.)
#2 Seoul 1964: Two men in a sidewalk bar follow a third into an existential black hole; The Rock: Village lepers and beggars consider their future at the onset of the Japanese invasion.
#3 Wonmidong Poet: A child’s view of the myriad characters in her neighborhood in a Seoul suburb; Cranes: The division North and South tests the friendship of two villagers.
#4 Kapitan Lee: A prominent medical doctor is determined to survive successive occupations by Japanese, “Russkis” and “Yankees” with his social status and career intact. Fire: A woman villager avenges the brutality of her husband’s family.
#5 Cukoo: Landing a coveted job, particularly with the victorious Americans, drive people to extreme measures; The Crane: A lyrical fantasy of transformation.
#6 Masks: One full turn of the great wheel of life; Rainy Season: Newlyweds are initiated into intimacy by the dynamic forces of nature; Suffering of Two Generations: Defeated in war, a father and son join forces for renewed victory in life. (55:56 min.)
*#7 Folding the Umbrella: A surreal tale about a black fish and a black wedding gown; Buckwheat Season: En route to market, two peddlers realize they are father and son.(39:18 min.)
*#8 Bird of Passage: An enterprising student survives wartime shining shoes and polishing his integrity. (29:44 min.)
Contemporary Korean Short Stories is under the artistic direction of acclaimed actor Soon Tek Oh in conjunction with the Society of Heritage Performers. Broadcast debut was in 1997 on KCRW (Southern California). The program received prestigious grants from the California Council for the Humanities and Korea Foundation. Rights secured for public radio broadcast only -- no tape sales. Transliterated promos and bibliographical material available.
Contemporary Korean Short Stories Advisory Committee
Robert Buswell, Editor Korean Culture Magazine, UCLA Department of East Asian Languages and Literature
Bruce Caron, Consultant Cultural and Community Affairs, Korean Cultural Center
Chung Moo Choi, East Asian Language and Literature, UC Irvine
Kyung-Ja Chun, Director Korean Language Program, Harvard University
Stephen Epstein, Professor Department of Classics, Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand
Bruce Fulton, Professor, University of Washington
Ju-chan, Fulton, Translator
Ann Sung-hi Lee, Professor East Asian Studies Center, USC
Peter Lee, Professor Dept. East Asian Languages and Cultures, UCLA
Walter Lew, Producer Kaya Productions
Soon-Teck Oh, Director / Actor
Carolyn So, Translator
Lauren W. Deutsch, Executive Producer, KCRW Contemporary Korean Short Stories
Chang-Kee Sung, Deputy Consul, Cultural Affairs, Consulate General of Korea
Craig Coleman, Managing Editor, National English Section, The Korea Times, Radio Seoul consultant
PROGRAM NUMBER
ORIGINAL AIR DATE (KCRW/ LOS ANGELES) | STORY TITLE (ENGLISH) | STORY TITLE (ORIGINAL) | AUTHOR | TRANSLATOR | STORY BOOK SOURCE | STORY PUBLISHER | Book Copyright | ACTOR | |
1 | January 19 | Portrait of a Shaman | Munyôdo | Kim Tong-ni | Yongch’ol Kim | Flowers of Fire | University of Hawaii Press | 1986 | Soon-Tek Oh / Emily Kuroda |
2 | February 16 | The Rock | Pawi | Kim Tong-ni | Chong-Wha Chung | Modern Korean Literature | Kegan Paul International | 1995 | Freda Foh Shen |
2 | February 16 | Seoul: 1964, Winter | Sôul, 1964 nyon kyoul | Kim Sûng-ok | Marshall R. Phil | Land of Exile | M.E. Sharpe / UNESCO | 1993 | Sung Kyu Park (Steve Park) |
3 | March 16 | Kapitan Lee | Kkôppittan Ri | Chôn Kwang-yong | Peter H. Lee | Flowers of Fire | University of Hawaii Press | 1986 | Jungha Suk (Eric Steinberg) |
3 | March 16 | The Fire | Pul | Hyôn Chin-gôn | Katherine Kisray | Modern Korean Literature | Kegan Paul International | 1995 | Freda Foh Shen |
4 | April 20 | Cranes | Hak | Hwang Sun-wôn | Peter H. Lee | Flowers of Fire | University of Hawaii Press | 1986 | Ro-Soo Park (Tim Lounibos) |
4 | April 20 | Wônmi-dong Poet | Wônmidong shiin | Yang Kwi-Ja | Julie Pickering / Kim So-Young | Manoa | University of Hawaii | 1996 | Jeanne Chinn |
5 | May 18 | The Crane | unknown | Yi Ch’ong-Jun | Stephen J. Epstein | Korea Journal | Sung Kyu Park (Steve Park) | ||
5 | May18 | The Cuckoo | Ppôkkugi | Kim Yi-sôk | Peter H. Lee | Flowers of Fire | University of Hawaii Press | 1986 | Soon-Tek Oh |
6 | June 8 | The Rainy Season | Changma | Han Mal-suk | Stephen J. Epstein | Korean Culture | Korea Cultural Service | 1992 | Jungha Suk (Eric Steinberg) |
6 | June 8 | The Suffering of Two Generations | Sunan idae | Ha Kun-ch’an | Kevin O’Rourke | Koreana | Korea Foundation | 1995 | R.C. Fleet |
6 | June 8 | Masks | T’al | Hwang Sun-wôn | Martin Holman | The Book of Masks | Readers International, Inc. | 1989 | Ro-Soo Park (Tim Lounibos) |
7 | Recorded / Not Aired | The Buckwheat Season | Memilggot p’il muryôp | Yi Hyo-sôk | Peter H. Lee | Flowers of Fire | University of Hawaii Press | 1986 | Ro-Soo Park (Tim Lounibos) |
7 | Recorded / Not Aired | Bird of Passage | Hujo | O Yongsu | Peter H. Lee | Flowers of Fire | University of Hawaii Press | 1986 | Soon-Tek Oh |
7 | Recorded / Not Aired | Folding the Umbrella | Usan ûl chôbûmyô | Hwang Sun-wôn | Stephen Epstein | The Book of Masks | Readers International, Inc. | 1989 | Esther Hyun |
