Stealing the show
March 24, 2006
A Korean TV mega-hit has shed light on the weaknesses of Thai programming
No series in recent memory has been as popular as the South Korean drama Dae Jang Guem or Jewel in the Palace which just ended on Channel 3. A lot of people knew without question where they would be on Saturday and Sunday nights – in front of a TV watching Dae Jang Guem. The series, about the first female doctor in a Korean palace in ancient times, has been the talk of the town, and although the series recently ended, its impact is relevant to some industries and has even triggered criticism of Thai dramas.
Dae Jang Guem was the first Korean series to air on Channel 3 even though many Korean series have been broadcast on other channels since a K-pop phenomenon hit the kingdom. The show, which also enjoyed high ratings in South Korea, Hong Kong and Taiwan, is considered one of the biggest successes for Channel 3, generating a huge amount of income since October last year. Commercial air time during the series, which aired for two hours every Saturday and Sunday night cost 290,000 baht a minute as Channel 3 earned 3.5 million baht an hour.
“We didn’t expect that the series would be this popular. Before it was aired, some sponsors even turned it down. But today, they are queued up for commercial air time,” says Surin Krittayapongphan, vice president of marketing and sales of Bangkok Entertainment.
Such income, however, doesn’t include the VCD sales which come in three disc sets and cost 1,300 baht a part and are selling like hot cakes. As a result, Channel 3 decided to rerun the series every weekday night during school holidays.
Tourism is another industry that has benefitted from the mega-hit Dae Jang Guem. More and more people are visiting South Korea just because they want to go the studio. Almost all travel brochures from tour companies offer to take you “to Yangjoo City, Gyunggi Province to Dae Jang Guem Theme Park. You can visit locations such as her kitchen, all the kitchen utensils and other rooms in the palace in Dae Jang Guem.”
“It is so popular that the clients will cancel their trip if there is no Dae Jang Guem Theme Park included in the tour,” says Bandid Apijitti, managing director of Discovery Korea.
According to the production company Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation (MBC), the theme park covers 6,600 square meters and the outdoor studio was set up exactly the way it was when the drama was produced, drawing many foreign visitors who want a direct experience with the series. The MBC website also describes palace food and has recipes of dishes in the series.
“The good thing about this series is that the producers have researched history and psychology in order to make it fun for the audiences while also making them learn something. It is not a cheesy soap opera like many Thai dramas. It gives useful information to the audience about medicine, food, or useful health tips, which implies that the producers did a lot of homework,” says Bandid.
The popularity of the series doesn’t stop there though. Dae Jang Guem comes in four pocket books and had sold nearly 400,000 copies, according to Seksan Sukwattano, manager of Siam Inter Multimedia. It has been the top two best sellers at several leading bookstores such as B2S, SE-ED and Nai In since the books were launched three months ago. Seksan believes that there won’t be enough books to meet demand during the book fair later this month.
The program’s popularity has proved that Thai audiences do not always gravitate to cheesy dramas. The impact of Dae Jang Guem has already triggered criticism of Thai dramas which are full of jealous characters, trite romances and corny scenes such as a jealous woman slapping the lead actress across the face while trying to steal the hero’s heart.
“It is difficult to improve Thai drama. It’s been cheesy and boring like this for a hundred years. Dae Jang Guem proved that a good and realistic romance could also be successful among Thai people. But Thai producers do not realize and keep producing the cheesy ones to please the audience,” says Wirat To-areemitr, a well-known columnist.
Drama lecturer and screenplay writer, Thanawadee Satityuttakarn from Chulalongkorn University’s arts faculty uses the show as a case study for her class.
She said one successful factor is that the series is full of twists or unexpected situations, unlike Thai dramas which have the same plots and guessable endings. Also, the screenplay writing process is normally subject to interference from the broadcasting channels.
“We found that television executives keep ordering producers to advance the plot,” says Thanawadee. “They require the story to move in two days as they are afraid that the audience will not continue to watch if the story doesn’t progress fast. But like in Dae Jang Guem, you can see that sometimes the story doesn’t really progress for one week, but it is still fun because every scene contains unexpected situations.”
Assistant professor Surin Ronakiet of the psychology department at Thammasat University said successful dramas are usually those which show people’s intellectual and emotional needs. They should have a mix of different elements such as culture and sociology.
“Thai series are not creative, but they allow the audience to release stresses and forget problems in daily life. But good drama should benefit the audience’s brain and improve their thoughts. It would be great if the producers understand the psychology of human nature,” Surin says. “Creativity in drama is very beneficial and could change society. But it depends on the producers – whether they discover this or are able to bring it out to the audience.”
Source: IHT ThaiDay 24 Mar 2006
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Hi! Are you Lee Young Ae? I like you very much. All of my friends like you. You are so pretty. Can you mail me please? Can I know where do you live? Now, I’m in South Korea. I’m from Myanmar (Burma). GTG
bi!
Comment by Aye Mon Myo — May 11, 2006 @ 8:48 pm
Hello……I am you’re no .1 fan.Can you come to Singapore again?Can you mail me?And give me your Da Chang Jin photos?I took a Korean course because of you.I am Shanice,primary 4.10 Thanks!
Comment by Shanice — June 23, 2006 @ 5:34 pm
hi . im from iran . i like you and your film : jewel in the palace. in iran we watch it on fridays
Comment by omid — January 4, 2007 @ 9:10 am
hi ,i am from iran ,i like your characteristic,my family like you so much,could you send your biography to me ,thanks
Comment by reza — February 24, 2007 @ 8:25 pm
very good jewel in the palace
Comment by mohssen — February 24, 2007 @ 8:54 pm
hi lee young aye ,this frm india ,i like your acting and serial verymuch ,i wish it continues for as long as possible
Comment by aseem — March 6, 2007 @ 9:07 pm
hi……tanks as film ……send wallpaper film….
Comment by amin khan — March 17, 2007 @ 4:44 am
HELLO dear
Comment by GHASEM — April 7, 2007 @ 10:40 pm
in the name of god
tank you for this film!
Comment by mimi keshvarifar — April 8, 2007 @ 8:21 pm
Hello,at first me & my family want to say you ….((you are the best corean actres)),& then can you send us one of your photo (plz the best of your portrate)with your sign??? thankssss
Comment by yaser — April 15, 2007 @ 8:16 pm
To the best actress of the world, Lady Lee young ae
Hi, when I start to write this letter, I thought very much about what I must write .First I want to express my interest to your really beautiful acting , I first saw you on ‘ Dae Jang Geum ‘ and I really attract to your acting and so I decide to know more about you and your films then I search about you on internet , for the first time I saw your pictures in web pages I really astonished .I am sure that you ask why this person become astonished when saw me in the internet , you know I said that I’m attract by your acting but what was I saw in the internet was your ( I’m really sorry ) body and your apparent form not your beautiful acting that I love it very much . Please let me expand my meaning, your apparent beauty will be fall by time run and your body become old as your apparent beauty but what is remain in the minds and souls is your acting and what you said in your dialog’s to guide people to welfare , I read a sentence in a book that I think it may be useful here , the sentence is : The people whom just proud because of their body will be forgotten when their body goes under the soil but the people whom proud because of their minds and souls will not be forgotten because their souls and words will not be goes under soil . I hopeful that my words don’t bother you , but I send this words for you ( just for you , not any other actress or actors ) because I saw something different in your eyes that I think is not from this world …
I will be glad if you send your opinion about my letter and maybe if we can talk about this issue that I think is very important.
I am Iranian.my city is Masshad
My Gmail E_mail: r.hz5711@gmail.com
I wait for replay this letter
I write this letter at April 27, 2007
5:50 to time Iran
Comment by Reza Hassan Zadeh — April 30, 2007 @ 4:21 pm
hi friends! I am your iranian fan- jewel in the palace korean drama is wonderful.I Love all of actors & actress so much specialy lady yangum.
Comment by jila — May 21, 2007 @ 12:58 am
hhiiiiiiiiiii i am from iran fila was very good send wallpeaper plz
Comment by mohammad — May 22, 2007 @ 3:37 am
Hi my name is Hamid
I fram is iran
Goodbay
Comment by Hamid — June 1, 2007 @ 4:54 am
send wallpeaper plz
Comment by Hamid — June 1, 2007 @ 4:59 am
hi im coming agane i am a boy from iran and my name is milad.
i love yuor playang in yangom
and i like you too
Comment by milad — June 6, 2007 @ 10:52 am
i comment again here you realy answerd this comments I don’t blive it i comment in last post and every websites about you pleas answer me
my email is sara32712000@yahoo.com
isee all of your films and you are my first and last favorite acteress.
excuseme if it have wrongs. because i can’t write english very good. come here plaese .i hope that see you in iran and speak with you.
Comment by sara from iran — June 8, 2007 @ 5:01 pm
i saw all of your films
Comment by sara from iran — June 8, 2007 @ 5:03 pm
hi miss lee young ae
im frm iran and like the yangoum’s role in (jawel in the palace)
and your nice actorian inthe film
Comment by milad — July 4, 2007 @ 10:53 am
hi tanks as film send wallpaper film in my mile
Comment by LORD — July 18, 2007 @ 8:45 am
From IRAN ,Thanks a million for the beautiful Korean Drama, a jewel in palace, from u and your assistant.I love yuor character in a jewel in palace for your patience . I wish you be successful in your life forever az you be in a jewel in…..
Comment by solmaz — July 28, 2007 @ 8:14 pm
i love lee youg ae ……………………very very vey…………………………….
mujse shadi karogi
Comment by saeed — August 4, 2007 @ 3:26 pm
hi, dae janggeum i want to meet you. my name is asep slamet riyadi, i come from indonesia. may, i know your identity? my phone number: +6285624680800. i’m very like with your acting in jewel in the palace
Comment by asheft — September 14, 2007 @ 4:09 pm
special thanks from menjango officer and mss youngum and the other personellty like shimby and king of the other peopel my name samad khatami from afghanistan and i lives here in iran tehran i saw your drama from iran tv its really good i wold very like want to call with minjango officer in korean act thanks from afghan peopel in the iran
Comment by samad khatami — September 23, 2007 @ 1:58 pm
hi tanks as film send wallpaper film in my mile
Comment by Mohammad Sadeghi — September 24, 2007 @ 1:56 am
hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii! i am from iran and we followed your serial”the jewel in the palace”completly.i love you veryyyyyyyyyyyymuch.your serial’s dvds are exist in iran.i will come to korea at future.
Comment by ramin — November 10, 2007 @ 3:07 am
i am ramin my e.mail is “ramin_2002t@yahoo.com pleas e.mail me.
Comment by ramin — November 10, 2007 @ 3:13 am
aassasasgmg
Comment by aaa — November 12, 2007 @ 8:28 pm
i am iranian …….yur serial was an affective role in iranains life….but what is so strang is that in the real life i didnt see any persones like yangom and minjango that love each other like this film.what is your mind about it dear in our country boyes love girls just for body and face beaty and if they see a girl whit yangom charector but whitout beaty never love her……………………you are realy beauty bu minjango in film loved you just for your charector…….irealy need your mind about this mater…………………i waait for your email …thx a lot
Comment by alma — December 10, 2007 @ 2:47 am
dear my email is hmtak6@yahoo.com
Comment by alma — December 10, 2007 @ 2:48 am
HI LEE YOUNG AE , OR SORRY , HI JUNGMA . I’M FROM INDIA . THESE DAYS YOUR BEST TV SOAP “THE JEWEL IN THE PALACE” IS PRESENTED ON SUNDAY NIGHT AT 08:30PM , I MUST SAY I HAVE NEVER SEEN SUCH A TV SOAP IT IS REALY FANTASTIC . I ALONG WITH MY FAMILY SIT IN FRONT OF TV ON SUNDAY TO WATCH THIS SOAP AND I CALLED EVERY ONE THAT COME FAST IT IS TIME TO WATCH JUNGMA . WE LIKE YOUR ACTING VERY MUCH . ITS TOOOOOO GOOD , AND YOUR WAY OF SPEAKING THE DIALOGS IS FANTASTIC. NOW I HAVE LOTS OF WORDS TO SAY BUT IT THINK IF ONLY I CONTINUE TO WRITE FOR YOU THEN IT MAY HAPPEN THAT YOUR OTHER FANS MAY NOT GET THE SPACE TO WRITE FOR YOU . PLEASE IT IS MY REQUEST PLEASE PLEASE READ MY COMMENT AND PLEASE ANSWER IT . I AM WATING FOR YOUR REPLY. AND ONE THING MORE SORRY IF I WRITE SOMETHING WRONG . BYE .TAKE CARE. BEST WISHES FOR YOUR NEXT SOAPS .
Comment by AMAN — July 4, 2008 @ 1:49 pm
wooooooo
im from saudi arabia . i like you and your film : jewel in the palace. in saudi we watch it on fridays
I LOVE YOU >
Comment by queen — July 8, 2008 @ 11:20 pm
wow, it seems like there’s a generous persian fanbase for korean things!
neat.
Anyway, I enjoyed this series as well!
Comment by uzhmakai — July 12, 2008 @ 11:32 am
(oh, and in the spirit of noting the diversity of the audience and such, an afghan from UAE)
Comment by uzhmakai — July 12, 2008 @ 11:33 am
nani
Comment by nabil nasnas — September 12, 2008 @ 5:24 am
nono
Comment by nabil nasnas — September 12, 2008 @ 5:25 am
lee
Comment by nabil nasnas — September 12, 2008 @ 5:26 am
nabil374446
Comment by nabil nasnas — September 12, 2008 @ 5:28 am
why stealing the show? is the show stealed?
Comment by Parantar — October 17, 2008 @ 10:07 pm
hi.you are very veryyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy pretty.please only once say me that , do you know about yourself beautifull?
please check my answer and give me best answer.
(az khoda baraye zibaiyetan mamnoon bashid).this phrase is persian/english language.
hashemfarsi@gmail.com
Comment by hashem — November 12, 2008 @ 6:36 pm
i like this movie
Comment by aung ko — August 25, 2009 @ 6:19 pm