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South Korean singer (1932?2023)
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
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]
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
南과 北
('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
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]
External links
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]
