The oldest active actor, Lee Soon-jae (born 1935), has left a void for about 7 months due to his absence. Recently, it became known that he did not participate in an advertisement shoot, sparking renewed concerns about his health. He had not appeared at a previous awards ceremony either, leading to fans' worries, and his continued absence from official schedules adds to the disappointment.

At the 37th Korean Producer Awards ceremony, which was broadcast on KBS1 on 15th, Lee Soon-jae was named the winner of the grants for the acting category but could not step on stage himself. Instead, the representative from his agency accepted the award on his behalf, conveying the message that "The teacher is not feeling well and could not attend. He is quite ill and needs encouragement and support," which raised concerns.

In response, OSEN reported, quoting a close associate of Lee Soon-jae, that "Health has not greatly deteriorated." They noted that "He has lost leg strength, making movement difficult, and he preferred to receive the award through a proxy rather than being supported by others." Up until a month ago, there had been some relief as there were remarks indicating that his health had improved significantly.

However, exactly one month later, Lee Soon-jae was once again absent from the advertisement shoot where members of the legendary sitcom"High Kick Through The Roof" gathered. Although his on-screen family, including Jeong Bo-seok, Oh Hyun-kyung, Jin Ji-hee, and Julien Kang, assembled in one place, 'father' Lee Soon-jae could not join them.

After the advertisement shoot, Jeong Bo-seok expressed on social media, "I hope Teacher Lee Soon-jae gets better soon," accompanied by a prayer emoji, conveying his longing. In response, netizens showed their concerns: "Another absence, I'm worried," "They said he had recovered, why hasn’t he been seen?" and "I really want to see Teacher Lee Soon-jae again."

Last October, Lee Soon-jae withdrew from the play"Waiting for Godot" due to health problems and entered a three-month break. He later returned in the KBS2 drama"Barking Dog," and even received his first grand award at the 2024 KBS Acting Awards. Especially moving the audience, he appeared on stage supported by Kim Yong-gun and Choi Soo-jong, and said, "Having lived long, there are days like this," with tears in his eyes.

Debuting on stage in 1956, Lee Soon-jae made his way to the home theater with the KBS inaugural drama"I Want to Be Human" and is a 'living legend' having acted for nearly 70 years. Last year's KBS Acting Awards were his first grand award and also the highest age recipient in history.

Recently, amidst the sad news of the passing of veteran actors like Kim Soo-mi and Yoon Moon-shik, there has been an increasing atmosphere of concern regarding Lee Soon-jae's continued absences. Netizens reacted with comments such as, "The entire 'High Kick' family was assembled but it felt empty without father... Please show us your healthy self again," "When you received the grand award last year, I was moved to tears... The resonance of a 70-year acting career. I really want to see you on stage again," and "It’s hard to believe you're 90 years old, you've been so active... Resting takes courage too. Please rest well and come back!" Some expressed worries about his condition getting worse, stating, "I hope he stays healthy and we can meet again in a great work."

National actor Lee Soon-jae. Many are fervently hoping to meet 'that face' again, beloved by all.

[Photo] Image capture, provided by the broadcaster

[OSEN]