Kwak Soon-ok
Born
곽순옥

20 March 1932 (1932-03-20)
Jilin, Manchukuo
Died12 September 2023 (2023-09-13) (aged 91)
Seoul, South Korea
Other namesKwak Sun Ok
OccupationSinger
Korean name
Hangul
Hanja
Revised RomanizationGwak Sun-ok
McCune–ReischauerKwak Sun-ok

Kwak Soon-ok (Korean: 곽순옥; 20 March 1932 – 12 September 2023), also spelled Kwak Sun Ok, was a Chinese-born South Korean singer.

Life and career

Born in Jilin, Soon-ok moved to South Korea shortly before the Korean War.[1] She debuted as a club singer in 1951, performing for the Eighth United States Army.[2] One year later, she started working as a musical theatre actress.[3] Also a lyricist, her major hit was the song "누가 이사람을 모르시나요" ("Does Anyone Know This Person"), which was the theme song of the radio series 남과 북 ('North and South') and of the 1965 film adaptation with the same title, and which was covered by numerous artists, notably by Patty Kim in a 1983 successful version.[1][2] In spite of her success, in 1965 she moved to Hong Kong and abandoned her musical activities.[1][2] She eventually moved to the United States, before returning to Seoul in her late years.[1] She made her last appearance in 2021, in the MBN program Spotlight on the World.[1][3] Soon-ok died on 12 September 2023, at the age of 91.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 문지연 기자 (13 September 2023). "'누가 이 사람을 모르시나요' 부른 원로 가수 곽순옥 별세". The Chosun Ilbo (in Korean). Retrieved 4 October 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 Caulfield, Henley (14 September 2023). "Veteran Korean Singer Kwak Sun Ok Passes Away". JazmineMedia. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
  3. 1 2 마아라 기자 (13 September 2023). "'누가 이 사람을 모르시나요' 부른 가수 곽순옥 별세…향년 91세". 머니투데이 (in Korean). Retrieved 4 October 2023.
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