MTV Iggy 6/7/2010 — Right off the heels of Rain’s MTV Movie Award win for Biggest Badass Star comes the announcement of Rain’s return to Korean dramas. It’s been five years since his last drama, A Love To Kill and during that time, he’s destroyed Korean music charts, starred in two Hollywood movies and produced an idol group, MBLAQ….
» You can read Sunny Kim’s post in its entirety on the MTV Iggy blogsite HERE.
— Stephe ^@@^
The Korea Times 6/7/2010 — Korean star Rain was Sunday crowned Biggest Badass Star at the 2010 MTV Movie Awards for his role in “Ninja Assassin.” The 27-year-old beat Hollywood A-list candidates such as Angelina Jolie, Channing Tatum and Sam Washington for the award, which goes to a notable performance in an action movie.
He is the first Korean to be recognized at the MTV Movie Awards. There are only four past recipients of [“badass” prizes] who are Asian: Jackie Chan for “Rush [Hour],” Zhang Zi-yi for “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” and Lucy Liu and Chiaki Kuriyama for “Kill Bill.”
“Ninja Assassin” was the 27-year-old’s first Hollywood lead role and second collaboration with the Wachowski brothers….
— Stephe ^@@^
» A very nice compilation of last night’s festivities on washingtonpost.com HERE. And what a party it was! ^@@^
The Manilla Bulletin 6/7/2010 — K-pop star Rain triumphed at the MTV Movie Awards, bagging the Biggest Badass Star award for his role in the Hollywood flick, “Ninja Assassin.”
Rain edged out Channing Tatum, Angelina Jolie, Chris Pine and Sam Worthington to win the award making him the first Korean artist to do so in the body’s history.The nominees and the winner for the category were announced by Jackie Chan and Jaden Smith.
“Wow! It’s amazing. I appreciate it. And they told me I was nominated for the Badass Award so I’ve been working out,” Rain said in his acceptance speech….
(video capture: Manilla Bulletin Entertainment)
— Stephe ^@@^
South Korean pop star Rain holds his MTV Best Badass Award for his role in ‘Ninja Assassin’ at the 2010 MTV Movie Awards at the Gibson Amphitheatre at Universal Studies in Universal City, California, USA, 06 June 2010. The movies are nominated by producers and executives from MTV and the winners are chosen on-line by the general public. EPA/MIKE NELSON
And it smells so good, in fact, that MTV Iggy continues to feel where we Clouds are coming from. They just can’t help it over there. 🙂
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Correspondent Samantha was flailing about because of his Golden Popcorn win right along with the rest of us. And yes, we keep asking that very same question: America, why don’t you know more about Rain? Huh?
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And later, after regaining some control, she proceeded to school those who needed it. Want to know more about Rain?
» You can read Samantha’s Iggy Live Blog article about last night’s MTV Movie Awards (in its entirety) on the MTV Iggy site HERE. You can also watch Rain talk about Ninja Assassin, check out Samantha’s terrific links (one of which leads to Mark James Russell’s The Reign of Rain), and then move right along to:
» MTV Iggy’s Ninja Assassin training preview (from last November, 2009).
Enjoy, all! — Stephe ^@@^
Wow. He looked so good when he got to the Red Carpet—understated and full of class. We might have actually gotten a look at him on television or on live stream if Sway and “Snookums” had seen him walk by them. But they were too busy killing us softly with overdose after overdose of Jersey Shore. — Stephe ^@@^
(image credit as tagged)
Last night, MTV told everyone else what we already knew. 🙂 — ^@@^
Fan made tribute, “So Beautiful.” With wonderful FanClub footage included! (credit & edit: onixis0625)
He did it. The apex of Rain’s MTV Movie Awards odyssey, a direct result of his difficult Ninja Assassin and Speed Racer journeys, came upon him last night at 7:27 pm PST, and left him with the victory he so deserved. This cherished Son of Korea has now also been decorated for his hard work and badassery here in the States. And we couldn’t be more thrilled.
You looked like a million bucks up on that stage, Ji-Hoon. Fighting!
Clouds, this is just as much your victory as it is his. You’re all incredible.
Rain has popcorn, everyone. If you ask nicely, he just might be inclined to share. 🙂
— Stephe ^@@^
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MTV’s Movies Blog, on MTV.com, was along for the entire ride from start to finish, live, with color commentary by correspondent Adam Rosenberg. At times, Rosenberg was as bewildered as we were at the goings-on on the Gibson Amphitheater stage (Ken Jeong’s butt cheeks not withstanding LOL). But then…
… but then, at 10:27 pm EST, THIS happened!
Don’t skip over the 10:32 pm mark…
Now that’s what you call a reaction. And it was almost as good as ours. 😉
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Later, Rosenberg gave Rain’s win a final nod before signing off for the night.
» You can watch Rain’s short but very sweet acceptance speech on the MTV site HERE.
What an utterly nerve-wracking moment for him! Yet he still managed to be oh so charming and cute as a button. We are so proud. 🙂
More goodies on Rain’s win—and hopefully his L.A. visit in general—to come tomorrow, Clouds. For now, in the wee hours of this morning, goodnight and we’ll see you then.
(podium and winners carpet images: Reuters & AP)
Hollywood Life 6/6/2010 — Get ready America, tonight may be the night you finally get to know South Korean pop star and actor Rain as he is up for Biggest Badass at the MTV Movie Awards! Rain is nominated for his role in Ninja Assassin alongside Sam Worthington (Clash of the Titans), Angelina Jolie (Wanted), Chris Pine (Star Trek), and Channing Tatum (GI Joe). He even flew in from Korea specifically to attend tonight’s show!
For those of you who do not know, 27-year-old Rain, aka Jung Ji Hoon, has released 7 albums in his native South Korea…
You might say… it’s on like Donkey Kong.
— Stephe ^@@^
No matter what happens tonight… thank you for inspiring our many friendships, for motivating us in our own goals, for literally changing our lives. Good luck, luv. This is for you.
승 또는 아무 승리… 우리는 당신을 사랑한다. 행운을 빌어요. 이것은 당신을 위한 것이다.
— Stephe ^@@^ & Terri :-} and all of your US Clouds
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An Angel Like No Other. (courtesy of babyrain2504)
It most certainly was, for us and many Rain fans, non-fans, and regular movie-goers all over the world. Remember? Let’s take a look back at why Rain will be at the 2010 MTV Movie Awards tonight, nominated for Biggest Badass Star of this year—NINJA ASSASSIN, and his Raizo skills. Enjoy this Indy Mogul / Beyond the Trailer movie review by Grace Randolph.
*Incredulous movie fan: “Rain is a… Korean pop star??” LOL!
— Stephe ^@@^
From November 2009, NA beyond the trailer. (credit: indymogul @YT)
Well, geez… we’ve got to have something to tide us over while we wait for signs of Rain in L.A., right? ^@@^
—
Team Raizo! (courtesy of saiyaZAM)
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Who’s our daddy? Heh. I meant to put this up a long time ago… (courtesy of abiyu86)
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Sexy back. (courtesy of DarkSerenety)
The day we’ve all been waiting for is finally here—June 6th, when Rain will walk into Gibson Amphitheater and sit amongst those who are now his peers. The day that the FIRST Korean national will be in the audience of the MTV Movie Awards as a final nominee. Hopefully it won’t be as nerve-wracking a day for Rain as it will be for us, though he’s got to be nervous at how the American public will receive him. He knows we’re with him, but the American mainstream is a whole other animal.
The voting (except for Best Movie) is over and the deal is sealed, but we can still strengthen our Ji-Hoon mentally and spiritually by sending good vibes his way as we go through our day. The apex of his MTV Movie Awards odyssey is upon him, Clouds. Don’t let him go through it alone.
— Stephe ^@@^
Always a favorite to watch… From his MTV Movie Awards biography page, Rain Answers Your Questions. (courtesy of o0oLjnho0o)
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Check out this clip from MTV Movie Awards supervising producer Jane Mun, as she briefly goes through a part of the show schedule, and how they are having a very cool special guest introduce host Aziz Ansari in the opener. And the written blurb above the clip, where the mysterious special guest is again alluded to. Hmmmmm.
We’re not saying it’s Rain… but wouldn’t it be just the coolest surprise ever? Times like these are the most fun when you can let your imagination run away with you.
In other words, don’t miss a second of the show. Just in case.
» Les Grossman, Aziz Ansari, and a Mysterious Surprise Guest.
— Stephe ^@@^
The voting page is down, but you can still enjoy the Biggest Badass Star nomination clips, including Rain’s desperate sprint through the streets of Berlin, all together in one sweet little package. 🙂 — ^@@^
» MTV’s Biggest Badass Star clips page.
Astrochicks 6/5/2010 — Angelina Jolie is the only chick to be nominated for the “Biggest Badass Star” at the MTV Movie Awards. Our Gemini girl is up against Channing Tatum, Chris Pine, Rain, and Sam Worthington. Which one will grab the ultimate prize? Most likely, it will be between Angelina Jolie for her role in Salt and Rain for his role in Ninja Assassin…
…Our Korean hunk is born under the sign of Cancer, he’s a ‘Ninja Assassin’ who overcame childhood adversity to become a worldwide cultural phenomenon….
» You can read this post in its entirety on the Astrochicks site HERE.
Even though the Astrochicks are Angie fans, they were kind to Rain and more than fair in their assessment of him, something we respect and appreciate. We liked this article, and tip our hat to the site where stars collide. Thanks, ladies!
— Stephe ^@@^
… as evidenced in this poignant fan made compilation of Rain images from far past to the present. And what a wonderful song. Enjoy. — Stephe ^@@^
The moon shines for you, my love. A lune brille pour toi, mon amour. (courtesy of jungjihoon59)
MTV.com 6/5/2010 — There are some new categories this year at the 2010 MTV Movie Awards, including Biggest Badass Star — and no, it’s not unnatural that you’re intimidated by this addition to the competitive lineup. After all, when talking about an assortment of characters ranging from a betrayed super-spy to a big blue alien, it’s more than understandable to find yourself in awe…
…Even if Pine can command a starship crew, is he capable of staving off the vicious warrior played by Rain in “Ninja Assassin,” the action flick produced by the Wachowski siblings? As the silent killer Raizo, the South Korean pop sensation pursued his fictional mentor with a bloodlust rarely seen in modern mainstream cinema. But are moviegoers on board with Raizo’s quest for vengeance?….
Have your shuriken primed and ready, Rain. It’s about to go down.
— Stephe ^@@^ 12:55 am EST
What’s the best way to say Happy Birthday to someone you love? Shout it out to the world!
Today, my best friend, Stephe, is one year older. And oh, what a year it has been.
This time last year, if someone had told me that in just a few months Stephe and I would be creating and running an unofficial fansite for the greatest pop-star in the world, I probably would have stared at them wide-eyed and backed away very, very SLOWLY. I think I can speak for Stephe and say that she probably would have too.
And yet, somehow, here we are anyway. Doesn’t that just show you how unpredictable and utterly delightful this universe is? I think it does. I also think it demonstrates what an incredibly generous person Stephe is, because without her, Cloud USA would not be what it is today.
So, thank you, Stephe, for all of the things you do for me, for my family, and for people all over the world through Cloud USA.
And Happy, happy birthday, chingu. And now…one of your favorite songs, care of Rain…
Love,
Terri :-}
(Video credit: pikyon @ YouTube)
MTV Iggy 6/5/2010 — That’s right, the MTV Movie Awards are so close!…
… Of course, we’re most excited for RAIN! The Korean pop sensation is nominated in the Biggest Badass Star category for Ninja Assassin. His competition:
Angelina Jolie (Wanted)
Channing Tatum (Stop Loss, G.I. Joe)
Chris Pine (Star Trek)
Sam Worthington (Clash of the Titans, Avatar)Oh man…it would be so amazing if Rain won! He’s the only non-American nominated in this category. Do you think he can win? You can still vote here! He’s supposed to be attending and we can’t wait to see him climb up to the podium to accept the award. Stay tuned to Iggy for Live Blog coverage starting at 8pm EST on Sunday!
Oh, we are feeling it too. Aren’t we? 🙂 — Stephe ^@@^ 5:01 pm EST
Asia broadcast 6/5. And… on to the lovin’! Rain and Han Ye-Seul do their part for the Love Song music video, on this weekend’s show. Some of this footage has been previously shown in entertainment news spots and such, but it’s worth watching because there is still a lot of stuff we haven’t seen about this particular shoot. For instance… take a good look at that single white contemporary-style chair that Rain and Ye-Seul shared (in the picture with this post). With them OUT of it, it looks pretty skinny. They really had to squeeze together on that thing, and that gets a WOW out of me. 🙂
Remember, from the earlier news footage, Rain was saying (after those first shots on the sofa) that Ye-Seul was making the work very easy for him and that she was wonderful to work with. He is quite the happy camper here. And so are we. What a great job they did in front of that huge set crew… so natural!
Have fun, Clouds. — Stephe ^@@^
(courtesy of ratoka @YT)
Nope. It is not. Back around 2007, Rain and Lee Na-Young, who is now confirmed as his new co-lead in the upcoming fall drama Fugitive ( 도망자 / Domanja / Runaway), had quite a bit of fun in a series of SK Telecom/Nate Story commercial spots. You know, for all the telephones that our Ji-Hoon has endorsed, they should give him a medal of honor. Right?
Enjoy this, from our Commercial Spots page. (Especially the one where he gets caught having lunch with one girl while texting Na-Young. Heheh.) 🙂 — Stephe ^@@^
Rain’s Nate Story CFs, all in one, English subbed. (courtesy of rainxsnow)
… member Michelle. And here’s the tip—
Photo #1 of 46 images on the Behind The Scenes At the 2010 MTV Movie Awards page, at MTV.com, is a picture of Rain’s seat at the Gibson Amphitheater. Oh yes, it is waiting for him. Ha! And it looks like an aisle seat (is that excellent foreshadowing for what’s going to go down on Sunday night, or what?). Feast your eyes, Clouds.
» Behind The Scenes At The Movie Awards page
Thanks for posting the pic, MTV. And thanks to Michelle for the info.
We are so excited. — Stephe ^@@^
From June 2nd. Let’s do it again, Clouds. My heavens—those pants. Just look at them. 🙂
» And you can revisit the images of Rain performing at the 56th Anniversary bash HERE. ^@@^
(credit: DC Rain Gallery / courtesy of ratoka @YT)
MTV has appointed St. Louis, Missourian Lauren Davis as their Coca-Cola Movie Awards insider for this year. She will be taking the viewing audience behind closed doors during the event, so of course, Clouds and fans across the Rain Blog-o-sphere were bound to ask her to be sure to interview our Ji-Hoon.
They are doing just that as we speak—requesting a Rain interview. Yes! Let’s hope she listens to them. 🙂
» MTV Movie Awards Insider: Meet Lauren Davis
— Stephe ^@@^
K Bites 6/5/2010 — Actress Lee NaYoung and world star Rain will be working together for the upcoming drama ‘Fugitive’, a new production by Kwak JungHwan PD and Cheon SeongIl writer. According to broadcast official, Lee NaYoung has been casted as the female lead for the upcoming drama KBS 2TV ‘Fugitive’ set to air this Autumn. With that, this will be Lee NaYoung’s drama comeback 6 years after MBC ‘Island’ in 2004.
Also this will be Rain’s actor comeback 5 years after ‘Let’s Go To School SangDoo’, ‘Full House’ and ‘A Love To Kill’….
(sourced from: Newsen)
» You can read Sookyeong’s post in its entirety on the K Bites site HERE.
You all know to be wary when “broadcast officials” say anything. But the word is starting to shoot around the Internet, sourced from both Asian outlets Newsen and StarNews, so far, about Na-Young accepting the role in 도망자 (romanization: Domanja, which literally means “runaway” or “fugitive.” It could or could not be above board—we will keep our eyes and ears open for more updates.
We hope this is true. We think Na-Young would do an excellent job opposite our Ji-Hoon.
— Stephe ^@@^
“What’s up, Hong Kong?!” (because I can’t sing this song in Korea, thanks to the censors) You will find the English lyrics to “You” on our Lyrics page #4 HERE. Enjoy! 😉 — ^@@^
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“You,” at the Six To Five fashion show in Hong Kong, two years past. (credit & edit: lunaluna / courtesy of eye0rain)
The Manilla Bulletin 6/4/2010 — K-pop boy band MBLAQ’s hard work has finally paid off. The idol group won their first ever music chart award for their second single “Y” on M! Countdown on June 3. They edged out boy band SS501 and other artists.
It was an emotional moment for the MBLAQ boys who were up against an established boy band. Leader Seungho choked back his tears as he thanked everyone for their support. Cheondoong and Mir also cried upon hearing that they won.
“Congrats MBLAQ! You deserve it! This is the beginning of reaping more awards,” one fan wrote a congratulatory message on absolutemblaq.net, the international forum for MBLAQ fans.
“MBLAQ you boys truly, truly deserved this. I knew this day would come,” another fan wrote.
In his message posted on the official MBLAQ fancafe, boy band member Lee Joon thanked fans for their support….
(image: Manilla Bulletin Entertainment)
» You can read Jonathan Hicap’s article in its entirety on mb.com.ph HERE.
Congratulations, Boys! You did it! And we are so proud of you.
— Stephe ^@@^
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"Mika, I don't mean to sound critical... but you've got to get me to that Red Carpet."
Well, well, well! Looks like the construction of the 2010 MTV Movie Awards RED CARPET at Gibson Amphitheater will be streamed live over the next two days from the MTV.com site, as well as the celebrity arrivals doing their walk-ins on Sunday night, beginning at 8 PM Eastern time and up until the show starts.
We don’t think this is the Red Carpet footage to be broadcast on television, as it is only a stationary camera. And the real action won’t start until almost-showtime. Still, it is pretty darned interesting.
Holy smokes—bookmark the spot, Clouds, and watch for our Ji-Hoon either on your computers or on your TVs, if the arrivals are aired in your area. We can’t wait to see him!
» MTV.com Red Carpet Live Stream
» Hollywood Crush’s blog post, on MTV.com, about this live camera set-up
[ *ETA 6/6: More MTV live stream links:
— Stephe ^@@^
But Lee Na-Young might.
Dramabeans 6/4/2010 — As soon as Rain confirmed his drama comeback in Runaway (the next project from Chuno’s writer-director team), speculation arose about who would be cast as his leading lady, and Jeon Ji-hyun’s name rose to the top of lists as a likely prospect. However, a source with her management company, Sidus HQ, has now stated that Jeon has declined the offer.
Now Lee Na-young’s name is being discussed as a top possibility, which was confirmed by her management, BOF, who stated on June 3 that although no decision has been made, they are looking favorably at the prospect….
(sourced from: DongA)
» You can read javabeans’ post in its entirety on the Dramabeans blogsite HERE.
Well, it was exciting to consider, but if Jeon Ji-Hyun (who also goes by Gianna Jun) declined, so be it. Her schedule could be just that hectic. So, onward and upward. We’d rather the right actress be put in the role opposite Rain rather than simply the actress we want.
Stay tuned. — Stephe ^@@^
(Lee Na-Young, below / Jeon Ji-Hyun, above)
[ *ETA 6/5: Indonesia has been added. ]
The International Dateline and the many time zones across our planet can make your head feel like it’s been inside of a blender—we all know that well, don’t we? So, for your viewing convenience, here are the broadcast times for this year’s MTV Movie Awards, showing on your local MTV channels. Some channels will also be carrying the Red Carpet arrivals before the show, so check your local MTV pages. All times are LIVE, unless otherwise indicated.
More will be added if they come to light. — Stephe ^@@^
9 PM Eastern, 6/6
8 PM Central, 6/6
7 PM Mountain, 6/6
6 PM Pacific, 6/6
9 PM EST (Canada) 6/6
2 AM CET (Europe) 6/7
3 AM (Africa) 6/7
9 AM UT (Asia) 6/7
10 AM UT (Korea), 6/7
4 PM AEST (Australia) 6/7 [not live]
9 PM BST (the UK) 6/7 [not live]
10 PM (Indonesia) 6/8 [not live, on Global TV, thanks to Rain Indonesia for this information! ^^ ]
» MTV Canada Movie Awards page
» MTV Europe Movie Awards page
» MTV BASE (Africa) Movie Awards page
» MTV Australia Movie Awards page
Unfortunately, MTV Arabia is down at this time for a revamp and repairs.
Cloud USA 