South Korea

The Cokscars? Or: The Awards the Newport Beach Film Festival Didn't Hand Out

For your consideration, 16 commendations that really matter

Arnold Schwarzenegger and Kim Ji-Woon Make Last Stand at Busan West Film Fest at Chapman

Getting director Kim Ji-Woon to open the 2013 Busan West Film Festival at Chapman University is enough of a coup, so it's just piling on to consider the star of Kim's debut U.S. feature will also be tagging along.Perhaps you've heard of him: Arnold Schwarzenegger?

Restaurant Roll Call for January 2013

So many restaurants opened this month, despite January being a notoriously slow month for the business. Irvine continues to see a boom in Asian eateries and Tustin is now home to an El Toro Bravo and their ginormous burritos. Here's our monthly list of "open and shut cases."

'The Tower' Is a Romantic Comedy-turned-Disaster Epic

Exciting things happen in tall buildings

Orange County Wife Beater Upset Federal Officials Deported Him To South Korea

South Korean Paul Hyunpyo Lee pleaded guilty in 2004 to committing felonies and misdemeanors involving wife beating, child abuse, criminal threats and drug possession in exchange for a sweetheart deal inside Orange County Superior Court.Judge M. Marc Kelly could have sentenced Lee to four years and ... More >>

The Wachowskis' Foggy Notion

The gargantuan epic 'Cloud Atlas' will dazzle you to dizziness

Psy Gets 'Freaked Out' About His Fame. Here's Five Other Things We Learned About The 'Gangnam Style' Star In His Reddit AMA

You've seen the video (over and over and--my God, is this still a thing?--over). And all its parodies, too. ("Hitler Style," anyone?) But yesterday, for the first time, fans got a chance to actually converse with "Gangnam Style" superstar Psy (well, virtually) in his "Ask Me Anything" session o ... More >>

The Anatomy Of A K-Pop Fan

This Saturday, thousands of K-pop fanatics will descend upon Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre in Irvine for KCON, a super-charged convention celebrating all things hallyu. K-pop--that's Korean pop for the uninitiated--is moving at a speed faster than Psy's pelvic thrusts, and the first-ever U.S. event ... More >>

Why the Hell is Psy So Popular?

See Also:* Advice to Every New Band: Stop Putting Out Records* No Doubt In Their Own Words* Matisyahu on Acting, His Growth and His BeardBy now, most Southern Californians, if not the entire world where there is an internet connection, should know, in one way or the other, Psy, a South-Korean r ... More >>

Love Blind, Deaf and True: 'Planet of Snail '

Movingly, Yi Seung-jun's documentary confirms relationships take work

5 Great Things To Make With Spam, From Spam Doughnuts to Spam Musubi Push-Pops

This year marks the 75th anniversary of Spam. Glorious, versatile, just-don't-tell-me-what's-inside-of-it Spam. While not everyone shares the same giddiness for Hormel's glistening canned meat product, those who do know that it can  be a cheap and comforting indulgence. I'll always remember wal ... More >>

On the Line: Phillip Chang of Yogurtland, Part Two

I dropped by the original Yogurtland near Cal State Fullerton after our interview. While we loved the value, my original impression used to be that the formula was a little icy for my taste. However, this visit was different from what I remember. Sure, the pastel décor (European-inspired and design ... More >>

Haeyoon Miller's Family Files Claims in Death by Tree Crushing Car

​I guess the biggest surprise is it took this long: six months after a Blue Gum Eucalyptus crushed to death 29-year-old Haeyoon Miller in her car, her parents filed separate claims against the City of Newport Beach.Lawyers representing Miller's father, Kang Nam-Ku of Seoul, South Korea, do not spe ... More >>

Santa Ana Water Rates Among World's Best

​Santa Ana, an Orange County city whose murders, graduation rates and housing values make it constantly in need of a hug, at least has bragging rights when it comes to one thing.Tap water.For the second straight year, the county seat's Water Resources Division has been recognized for producing amo ... More >>

What We Learned, March 3-9

​It's my dick in a box, I mean, a look at the week past and what we learned for it.MARCH 3: Kristen Wiig and host Lindsay Lohan appear in a hilarious Saturday Night Live skit mixing two iconic local entities: The Real Housewives of Orange County and The Unreal Princesses of Disneyland. "Weekend Up ... More >>

This Factory in Georgia Makes Chopsticks For People in Asia

​CNN Money has a wonderful story on Jae Lee, a man who launched a chopstick factory in Georgia. Strange? Sure. Successful? Absolutely.   The South Korea-born entrepreneur founded Georgia Chopsticks, which makes four million sets of the disposable wooden utensils each week, exporting them ... More >>

[UPDATED with Official Denial:] Reporters Keep Pressure on Newport Beach to Release Details on Tree That Killed Haeyoon Miller

​UPDATE, NOV. 17, 11:12 A.M.: Newport Beach City Manager Dave Kiff claims the tree that killed motorist Haeyoon Miller in September showed no sign of disease.Kiff was reacting to a report that shows many of the 140 blue-gum eucalyptus trees that were removed along city-maintained medians in the wa ... More >>

On the Line: Diane Yoon of Merely Sweets, Part One

Photo by Kevin Lara​Our final subject for "Unofficial Ladies Month" at On the Line is classically trained pastry chef Diane Yoon. Her dessert shop, Merely Sweets, is a collaboration with a classmate and her brother. She wanted to check out Portola Coffee Lab, so we spent a lazy SoCo morning sippin ... More >>

[UPDATED with Removal of 100 Trees:] Can Death Be Blamed on Last Week's Small Earthquake?

​UPDATE, SEPT. 21, 9:45 A.M.: Whether or not a small earthquake earlier in the day caused a 10-ton Blue Gum Eucalyptus to fall and crush to death Haeyoon Miller on Thursday afternoon, the city of Newport Beach is cutting down 100 more trees in the same area.The city announced Tuesday evening that ... More >>

Byung Ho Pak, 71-year-old Garden Grove Doctor, Arrested For Medicare Fraud During Nationwide Crackdown

​The feds arrested a 71-year-old doctor, who practiced in Garden Grove, as part of a nationwide Medicare fraud sting this week. Byung Ho Pak and Mary Lim, manager of Pak's Seoul East West Medical Center, allegedly billed Medicare for about $2 million worth of pyhsical therapy services that w ... More >>

On The Line: Sea Kyeong Kim of Charlie Palmer At Bloomingdales, Part Two

Photo by Meranda Carter​Our interview with Chef Kim continues as we look into his background in Korea, as well as his aspirations for the future. We also hear about his experience working for previous On The Line subject, Amar Santana. Stay in the loop by reading Part One here, and get your heirlo ... More >>

Dat Thanh Sells Nom Nom Nem Nuong Cuon

[Hole In the Wall] This Westminster family restaurant has the best barbecue spring rolls in OC—but the broken-rice dishes are even better

Allen Baylis, Surf City Lawyer, is Source on Stories About Red-Light Cameras, Nudity and Raëlians

​Huntington Beach attorney Allen Baylis is making the media rounds this week thanks to two issues he regularly fights in court: government use of red-light cameras and government bans on public nudity.As Orange and Westminster this week consider joining Anaheim in banning red-light cameras, Baylis ... More >>

Neveria Flor de Mexico Offers a Treatise on Icy Treats

[SUMMER GUIDE] Where to go this summer for frozen fun you can eat

Samuel Chai Cho Oh Gets Prison Time For Selling Diplomas at Fake University

ICEA fake graduation ceremony at the fake school, California Union University. Hundreds of "students" "attended" Fullerton's "California Union University," a school with possibly no books or classes or teachers.It was a school run by 66-year-old pastor Samuel Chai Cho Oh, who was sentenced on Monday ... More >>

Jang Mo Gip Is Like Mother, Like Daughter

[Hole In the Wall] The Garden Grove Korean favorite moves locations but keeps its great soups.

Forever 21 Is Foreverywhere

[Trendzilla] The fast-fashion giant is coming to a mall near you

Wacky Snacks: SamYang Topokki - Red Pepper Paste Dipped Snack

Edwin GoeiName: SamYang Topokki - Red Pepper Paste Dipped Snack Origin: Korea Found at: H-Mart, Garden Grove Cost: $0.79

Crunky

Edwin Goei​Name: Crunky Ball Chocolate Origin: Korea Found at: H-Mart, Irvine Cost: $3.49 Ingredients: Sugar, Whole Milk Powder, Cocoa Mass, Cocoa Butter, Corn, Vegetable Fat, Lactose, Whey Permeate Pwder, Emulsifer (Soy bean), Arabic Gum, Salt, Tocopherol (Vitamin E), Artificial Flavor (V ... More >>

U2 Rose Bowl Show to Be Streamed Live on YouTube

Chris SansenbachU2 in Anaheim, April 2005.​U2, YouTube. It just makes too much sense.We talked earlier this week about how massively packed the Rose Bowl in Pasadena will be for the U2 show this Sunday, with 100,000 cross-generational music fans coming from across Southern California--really, just ... More >>

Carrie Brownstein Calls Weezer the 'Ultimate Novelty Band'

Former Sleater-Kinney singer/guitarist Carrie Brownstein has a blog on NPR called Monitor Mix (stick with me), and yesterday she called out Weezer for being "the ultimate novelty band." Specifically, she targeted two of their new songs, "I'm Your Daddy" and "The Girl Got Hot," which the band debuted ... More >>

Threat-level: Killer Tadpole

Korean box-office monster emerges from the Han River to slime us stateside in The Host

Iraq's Cinema of Longing

A conversation with director James Longley

Special Screenings

Movie of the Week: The Big Clock

Grub Guide

Tasty morsels from the county's best damn dining guide

Grub Guide

Tasty morsels from OC's best damn dining guide

Grub Guide

Orange County's best damn dining guide

Grub Guide

The county's best damn dining guide

The Anaheim Example: How grammar will save baseball

Last night, Anaheim was home to both The Happiest Place on Earth™ and a little corner of Mudville, where there is no joy, because last night in Anaheim, Team USA was eliminated from the World Baseball Classic. Mexico beat the major leaguers representing United States, 2-1. Only four teams now ... More >>

Grub Guide

This Week in Numbers

Great Food Moments in Weekly History

Tea and a Bit of Joe

Diary of a Mad County

Dear Register Reader

We respond to the Registers readers because the Reggie wont and we think, frankly, thats just bad form

Red Ken

OCC poli sci prof harangues college protestors

Schedule of Events

Taboo Sex in World War II

Keep Your Trap Shut

Traveling through the new Vietnam

Coming Clean

Beyond Politics

Asian fest films get personal