Comedienne Park Na-rae Continues Media Conquest

Park Na-rae poses at a press event in Seoul on Wednesday to promote her book.

Suddenly there is no escaping diminutive comedienne Park Na-rae on TV, where she appears as a regular panelist on no fewer than seven programs, including MBC reality show "I Live Alone".

Advertisement

Now her conquest of the media continues with her book "Welcome to Narae Bar", an instant hit that includes a collection of her essays and tips on cooking and interior decoration. The first print run sold out within a week, and the second in after another week.

On Wednesday she celebrated the publication of the third print run in a press event in Seoul to manage the flood of interview requests she has been unable to handle. "It feels like a dream", she said, that her decade-long obscurity has finally come to a spectacular end.

Park is unrivaled in the male-dominated world of entertainment panel shows. She is bold, cheerful, showy, yet fits in nicely with others.

Park had big dreams when she left her hometown of Mokpo, South Jeolla Province for Seoul, and never gave up, despite countless unsuccessful auditions.

"Even when I was working a number of part-time jobs while doing some very minor roles, I enjoyed my life and was happy about it", Park recalls. "I had no money, so I had no choice but to invite others to my home and share the food I cooked. I called it 'Narae Bar'".

Park successfully established her own style of fashion and humor. "Can't someone with a muffin top wear revealing clothes?" Her fun-filled life has translated well into talk shows and struck a chord with young viewers.

"I was coming to the end of my patience and was about to quit and prepare for a civil servant exam when things began to go well", she says.

"There are always some people who ask why a woman would say such a thing, and why she would go that extreme. But men and women have the same desire to make others laugh", she adds.

"I started to get famous when the level of entertainment programs went up and the culture became more open, so I have no fear of prejudices, and I' always ready to completely embarrass myself to make others laugh, which I think makes viewers feel at ease. I will continue to be full of energy as I am right now".