Becoming a Billionaire | |
---|---|
Also known as | Birth of the Rich Birth of a Rich Man |
Genre | Comedy Romance |
Written by | Choi Min-ki |
Directed by | Lee Jin-seo |
Starring | Ji Hyun-woo Lee Bo-young Lee Si-young Namkoong Min |
Country of origin | South Korea |
Original language | Korean |
No. of episodes | 20 |
Production | |
Producer | Lee Han-ho |
Production locations | Seoul, South Korea |
Running time | 60 minutes Mondays and Tuesdays at 21:55 (KST) |
Production company | Da.da Creative Group |
Original release | |
Network | KBS2 |
Release | March 1 (2010-03-01) – May 4, 2010 (2010-05-04) |
Becoming a Billionaire (Korean: 부자의 탄생; Hanja: 富者의 誕生; RR: Bujaeui Tansaeng; lit. "Birth of the Rich") is a 2010 South Korean television series starring Ji Hyun-woo, Lee Bo-young, Lee Si-young and Namkoong Min. It aired on KBS2 from March 1 to May 4, 2010, on Mondays and Tuesdays at 21:55 for 20 episodes.
Plot
Choi Seok-bong believes he is the son of a billionaire that had a one-night stand with his mother. While working as a bellboy at a luxury hotel, Seok-bong practices the qualities he thinks a billionaire's heir would have; all these efforts are for the day he meets his birth father. But one day, Seok-bong is diagnosed with breast cancer, which only has a 50 percent survival rate. Seok-bong doesn't have enough money for treatments, and finds it absolutely ridiculous that a billionaire's heir would die because he has no money. Finding his biological father may be Seok-bong's only hope, so he turns to Lee Shin-mi, the heiress of Ohsung Group and a notorious penny-pincher, for help.
Cast
Main characters
- Ji Hyun-woo as Choi Seok-bong
- Park Gun-woo as teenage Choi Seok-bong
- A bell boy at Ohsung Hotel in the first few episodes.
- Lee Bo-young as Lee Shin-mi
- Kim So-hyun as young Lee Shin-mi
- The heiress of Ohsung Group, and a strict and frugal person. Ohsung Hotel director in the first few episodes.
- Namkoong Min as Chu Woon-seok
- An ambitious man whose goal is to revive his father's company, Frontier Group, and who is interested in Shin-mi. Near the end of the drama, he silently declares his love for Tae-hee when she visits him in prison.
- Lee Si-young as Bu Tae-hee
- A spoiled heiress of Buho Group who is interested in Woon-seok. / Bu Tae-hee's mother (ep. 11, cameo)
Supporting characters
- The CEO's
- Yoon Joo-sang as Lee Jung-hyun
- CEO of Ohsung Group, father of Shin-mi
- Kim Eung-soo as Bu Gwi-ho
- CEO of Buho Group, father of Tae-hee
- Park Young-ji as Chu Young-dal
- CEO of Frontier Group, father of Woon-seok
- Extended cast
- Shin Da-eun as Han So-jung
- Shin-mi's secretary
- Kim Dong-gyun as Mr. Yoo
- Employee of Ohsung who works as a spy for Woon-seok.
- Jung Joo-eun as Yoon Mal-ja
- Tae-hee's secretary
- Kim Ki-bang as Park Kang-woo
- Seok-bong's best friend
- Park Min-ji as Park Kang-sook
- Kang-woo's sister
- Ok Ji-young as Bang Soo-jin
- Weekly magazine reporter
- Sung Ji-ru as Woo Byung-doo
- A homeless wanderer with an interest in molybdenum, Seok-bong's irksome acquaintance, uninvited roommate, and later, business partner.
- Jang Yoo-joon as Woo Bung-eo
- Byung-doo's son who is musically talented.
- Kim Mi-kyung as Kang-woo's mother
- Jung Han-yong as Kang-woo's father
- Min Wook as Ha Joon-tae
- Son Ho-young as young adult Ha Joon-tae
- The ailing owner of the license to the mining rights of a molybdenum mine.
- Park Chul-min as Kim Dal-soo
- Hotel captain at Ohsung Hotel, and later Lee Jung-hyun's butler
- Cameos
- Son Ho-young as Seok-bong's father
- Lee Won-jong as Seok-bong's middle school math teacher
- Choi Song-hyun as Seok-bong's mother when she met Ha Joon-tae
- Jang Tae-sung as Ohsung Hotel bellman
- Lee Han-wi as Teriah Park
Ratings
Episode # | Original broadcast date | Average audience share | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
TNmS Ratings | AGB Nielsen | ||||
Nationwide | Seoul National Capital Area | Nationwide | Seoul National Capital Area | ||
1 | 1 March 2010 | 12.1% | 11.9% | 12.2% | 12.8% |
2 | 2 March 2010 | 11.8% | 11.6% | 11.6% | 12.3% |
3 | 8 March 2010 | 11.4% | 11.0% | 12.2% | 11.1% |
4 | 9 March 2010 | 13.1% | 12.8% | 12.6% | 12.2% |
5 | 15 March 2010 | 16.2% | 16.1% | 15.0% | 14.5% |
6 | 16 March 2010 | 17.7% | 18.0% | 17.0% | 17.9% |
7 | 22 March 2010 | 15.5% | 15.7% | 14.9% | 15.5% |
8 | 23 March 2010 | 15.2% | 14.9% | 15.7% | 16.2% |
9 | 29 March 2010 | 15.6% | 15.2% | 15.6% | 16.6% |
10 | 30 March 2010 | 16.0% | 16.2% | 15.9% | 16.8% |
11 | 5 April 2010 | 16.2% | 15.8% | 15.1% | 15.1% |
12 | 6 April 2010 | 17.7% | 17.8% | 16.2% | 16.6% |
13 | 12 April 2010 | 16.5% | 16.2% | 13.5% | 13.3% |
14 | 13 April 2010 | 16.7% | 16.9% | 14.4% | 14.5% |
15 | 19 April 2010 | 16.6% | 16.6% | 14.8% | 15.1% |
16 | 20 April 2010 | 14.9% | 14.6% | 14.2% | 14.2% |
17 | 26 April 2010 | 14.2% | 14.0% | 14.3% | 14.0% |
18 | 27 April 2010 | 13.1% | 13.0% | 13.0% | 12.7% |
19 | 3 May 2010 | 14.2% | 14.3% | 13.3% | 13.0% |
20 | 4 May 2010 | 16.6% | 17.0% | 15.5% | 15.3% |
Average | 15.1% | 15.0% | 14.3% | 14.5% |
International broadcast
Its Japanese broadcasting rights were sold to NHK (along with another KBS drama The Great Merchant) for US$3 million. It also aired on Fuji TV as part of the network's "Hallyu Alpha Summer Festival," and on cable channel KNTV beginning July 2, 2014.
It aired in Thailand on Workpoint TV from March 10, 2014, to April 4, 2014.
References
- Oh, Jean (March 1, 2010). "Post-Olympian line-up ushers in spring". The Korea Herald. Archived from the original on 2015-06-13. Retrieved 2013-07-10.
- Wee, Geun-woo (February 24, 2010). "PREVIEW: KBS TV series The Birth of the Rich". Asiae. Archived from the original on 2013-10-15. Retrieved 2013-07-10.
- Yoon, Hee-seong (5 March 2010). "REVIEW: KBS TV series The Birth of the Rich". Asiae. Archived from the original on 2013-10-15. Retrieved 2013-07-10.
- "TNMS Daily Ratings: this links to current day-select the date from drop down menu". TNMS Ratings (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2013-11-28. Retrieved 2013-10-09.
- "AGB Daily Ratings: this links to current day-select the date from drop down menu". AGB Nielsen Media Research (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2013-12-26. Retrieved 2013-10-09.
- Cho, Bum-ja (14 April 2010). "Dramas Merchant, Rich sold to Japan for USD 3 mln". Asiae. Archived from the original on 2014-02-21. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
- "Programme Detail" Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine. (in Japanese) kntv.co.jp
- "เรื่องย่อ Becoming a Billionaire". luvasianseries (in Thai). 2014-03-17. Archived from the original on 2017-02-11. Retrieved 2017-02-11.
External links
- Official website (in Korean)
- Becoming a Billionaire on KBS World
- Becoming a Billionaire at HanCinema