Actor Son Seok-koo confessed that during his military service, he forged his parents' seals to volunteer for deployment to Iraq. At the time, after missing his first opportunity to apply due to his parents' opposition, Son secretly created his parents' seals and submitted an application. He only informed his parents of the fact after being selected as a deployment candidate.
In Episode 8 of SBS's 'Will You Do Anything? - Secretariat,' broadcast on the 23rd, Lee Seo-jin and Kim Kwang-gyu were depicted transforming into Son Seok-koo's managers and joining him for his schedule.
On this day, while having lunch with Son Seok-koo, Kim Kwang-gyu mentioned his past experience of deploying to Iraq.
Kim Kwang-gyu asked a barrage of questions, saying, "How did our Seok-koo end up going to Iraq? Did your father tell you to go? Was it voluntary?"
In response, Son Seok-koo stated that he had volunteered voluntarily, saying, "I originally wanted to go to Iraq."
At the time, Son Seok-koo had applied for deployment by forging his parents' seals.
Son Seok-koo revealed, "I was working at the Army Headquarters then, so there was a place where you could buy seals," and "I forged my parents' seals there," surprising the audience.
Afterwards, Son Seok-koo only informed his parents of the deployment after being selected as a candidate.
Son Seok-koo confessed, "After I got in, I told my parents, 'If I say I forged it now, I'll go to the brig.'"
He then explained, "I had expressed my desire to go in previous cohorts, but my parents said no," and "So I planned a new strategy."
Son Seok-koo still vividly remembers his father's reaction at the time.
Son Seok-koo said, "My father's sigh coming through the phone at that time is unforgettable."
Kim Kwang-gyu was curious about why Son Seok-koo had volunteered for deployment to Iraq even to the point of forging his parents' seals.
In response, Son Seok-koo recalled the period when he had to adapt to the Korean military after a long stay in the United States.
Son Seok-koo said, "I lived in the United States for quite a long time starting from when I was 14 years old, and I enlisted just two months after coming to Korea."
He then explained the difficulties at the time, saying, "It was hard to adapt. I couldn't speak Korean well back then."
Ultimately, Son Seok-koo worked even harder in his military service to adapt to the unfamiliar environment.
Son Seok-koo said, "When I went to the military, I felt that I had to work hard here to mix with people."
He then revealed that he had worked hard as a trainee and completed basic training as the top student, surprising the audience.
Afterwards, he developed a desire to gain more experience as a soldier.
Son Seok-koo explained, "I wanted to go as far as I could as a soldier," and "I missed the opportunity when I was a private second class, so I volunteered when I became a private first class and went to Iraq."
During his deployment to Iraq, he was originally a rifleman but also took on interpretation duties using his English skills.
Son Seok-koo recalled his tense deployment life, saying, "I was originally a rifleman, but since I did some interpreting, I was assigned interpretation missions. While going on interpretation missions, I visited many dangerous areas."
He also revealed special experiences he had in the local area.
Son Seok-koo explained the climate characteristics of the desert region, saying, "When sandstorms start blowing there, planes cannot take off."
He then recalled memories from that time, saying, "If you are isolated, you play soccer and basketball with soldiers from various countries, eat together, touch each other's guns, and become close."
In particular, Son Seok-koo explained that his experience deploying to Iraq also influenced his later path as an actor.
Son Seok-koo honestly said, "When I was young, I wanted to try various experiences. They give you a lot of money too."
He then revealed that he used the deployment allowance for acting studies, saying, "When I came back after my Iraq deployment ended, I had earned 12 million won from the deployment. With that money, I went to Vancouver to learn acting."
Listening to this, Lee Seo-jin said, "The only celebrities who have been deployed to Iraq are Nam Jin and Son Seok-koo."
Upon hearing this, Son Seok-koo showed a humble reaction, saying, "Nam Jin actually went into enemy territory, so he is different from me."
in ENTERTAINMENT
