Day of the Shining Star
Kim Jong-il was born in February 1941 to Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-suk in Siberia in the Russian Federal Republic, Soviet Union where his father had been in exile because of his guerilla activities. North Korean propaganda, however, dates Kim Jong-il's birth to 16 February 1942 and locates it at the Mount Paektu area in Korea, the mythical place of origin of the Korean people, where Kim Il-sung supposedly ran a guerilla camp. In reality, the guerillas were based in Manchuria at the time and Kim himself had been to the Soviet Far East before and after Kim Jong-il's birth.
Kim Young-sik
Kim Young-sik (born 1953) is a Seoul engraver of Oriental seals who impersonates North Korean leader Kim Jong-il. Ever since his sister-in-law teased the businessman's sagging form as a likeness to the chairman, Kim Young-sik has portrayed Kim Jong-il at every opportunity, in movies, television shows, commercials, and for personal appearances. "When someone tells me I don't resemble Kim Jong-il in certain respects, I'm unhappy," said Kim in "The Korea Times". Unlike his more cosmetically enhanced competitor Bae Eun-sik, "I am a natural," Kim told the "Los Angeles Times". "I didn't have to perm my hair. I didn't need plastic surgery. Even my family name, Kim, didn't have to be changed. Sometimes I feel like I "am" Kim Jong-il." Kim, whose stated goal is to have the leader say, "Little Brother, come and see me," affirms, "I wouldn't want Kim Jong-il to be offended by anything I do. I don't want to portray him as an evil person."