[Korea Encounters] Hahn Dae-soo s 18-day rollercoaster ride of fame in 1968
Posted : 2020-12-15 23:12
By Matt VanVolkenburg
In August 1968, Hahn Dae-soo, then 20, returned to Korea after an absence of four years. Incredibly, though he had only ever played music at open-mic nights, eight days later he found himself performing his own songs on national television.
A complicated family situation had led to Hahn growing up on both sides of the Pacific, and in his late teens he attended the University of New Hampshire briefly before dropping out and studying at the New York Institute of Photography. During that time he lived in Alphabet City, which he described to The Korea Times as the slum of the slum of New York City. At that time, in the 60s, that s where all the drug- not only addicts, but where the dealers hung out. Hookers, Che Guevara wannabes, people making bombs, it was crazy!