Actor Kim Ji-mi delivers opening remarks at a press conference for the special exhibition marking the 60th anniversary of her debut, ‘An Enchanting Actor, Kim Ji-mi’, held at the Korean Film Archive in Sangam-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul, in 2017. Photo Yonhap News

With news of actor Kim Ji-mi’s passing, her dazzling life as a ‘silver-screen star’ has returned to the spotlight.

Born Kim Myeong-ja, Kim Ji-mi earned the moniker ‘Elizabeth Taylor of Korea’. Born in 1940 in Daedeok County, South Chungcheong Province, she was planning to study in the United States while attending Duksung Girls High School when she was cast by director Kim Ki-young and debuted at 17.

She also took the stage name ‘Kim Ji-mi’ when she debuted in director Kim Ki-young’s film ‘Twilight Train’. Rising to stardom with the 1958 film ‘Star, In My Heart’, she appeared in works such as ‘3 p.m. on a Rainy Day’ (1959) and ‘Jang Hee-bin’ (1961), opening a golden era of Korean cinema.

The late actor Kim Ji-mi during her career. Photo Sports Kyunghyang DB

The 1960s and 1970s were her heyday, and she appeared in works by master directors such as Kim Soo-yong’s ‘Land’ (1974) and Im Kwon-taek’s ‘Gilsotteum’ (1985). Through the 1990s, her filmography reached over 700 titles. Her life as a glamorous silver-screen star also set the capital abuzz, with three legal marriages and divorces, including with director Hong Seong-gi and physician Dr. Lee Jong-gu, as well as high-profile relationships with star actor Choi Moo-ryong and singer Na Hoon-a.

Her awards record as an actor was equally illustrious. She was a frequent winner of the Grand Bell Awards Best Actress prize and also received Best Actress at the Panama International Film Festival. From 2014, in recognition of her career and contributions, she received the Contribution Award at the 15th Women in Film Korea Awards, and in 2016, the Eungwan Order of Cultural Merit at the 7th Korea Popular Culture and Arts Awards.

The late actor Kim Ji-mi. Photo Korean Film Archive

In 1987, she founded Jimi Film and reinvented herself as a producer, making ‘America·America’ (1988) and ‘Myeong-ja Akiko Sonia’ (1992). In 1995, she served as chair of the Korean Film Association; in 1998, as co-chair of the Pan-Film Professionals Emergency Committee to defend the screen quota; and in 1999, as a member of the Film Promotion Committee, also working as an administrator. In 2010, she was inducted into the ‘Filmmakers Hall of Fame’ under the title ‘Glamorous Actress’.

At what was virtually her last official public appearance, the Busan International Film Festival in 2019, she said, “As an actor and as a person, I am drawing near to the terminal station,” and, “I would be grateful if you would keep me in your hearts forever.”

The Korean Film Association is preparing a film industry funeral under its auspices. As the deceased passed away in the United States, a wake has not yet been arranged.