List of leaders of North Korea
At the end of World War II, Soviet Union occupied the northern half of Korea and in 1946 established the Provisional People's Committee for North Korea chaired by Kim Il-sung. On 9 September 1948, the DPRK was proclaimed, also led by Kim Il-sung.
Dennis Rodman
On February 26, 2013, Rodman made a trip to North Korea with Vice Media correspondent Ryan Duffy to host basketball exhibitions. He met North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Rodman and his travel party were the first Americans known to have met Kim. He later said Kim was "a friend for life" and suggested that President Barack Obama "pick up the phone and call" Kim since the two leaders were basketball fans. On May 7, after reading an article in "The Seattle Times", Rodman sent out a tweet asking Kim to release American prisoner Kenneth Bae, who had been sentenced to 15 years of hard labor in North Korea. Kim released Bae the following year.