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Oh, Dear Leader

Eccentricity, self-defence, brinkmanship—what made Kim Jong-il blow the N-horn?

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Oh, Dear Leader
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The Not-So-Secret Life Of Kim Jong-Il
  • Sixty-five years old, Kim Jong-il wears platform shoes and sports a bouffant hairstyle to appear taller than his 5 feet 3 inches. Known as Dear Leader.
  • Has been married three times. His last wife Ko Young-hee died in 2004. He has been living since then with Kim Ok, who had served as his personal secretary since the '80s. Has three children from his marriage, another 13 outside of it.
  • Has a string of mistresses. Persistent rumours of young women being kidnapped in Japan to be his companions in luxury villas around the capital.
  • Has a passion for cognac, particularly Hennessy VSOP. Drained 10 glasses of wine during his 2000 summit with South Korean President Kim Dae-jung.
  • Loves food. Live lobsters were airlifted daily to his train that he took to visit Russia. Eats with silver chopsticks.
  • Has a library of 20,000 Hollywood films. Had a South Korean director kidnapped in 1978 to build a North Korean film industry.
  • Loves Mercedes Benz, and avid fan of cycling and basketball.
  • Suspected to have organised the 1983 bombing attacks in Rangoon that killed 17 visiting South Korean officials, including four cabinet ministers. Allegedly behind the bombing of a South Korean airline in 1987 which killed all 115 people on board.

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Outlook
Kim Jong-il: North Korea's Dear Leader
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