John Cho Biography
Summary
"John Yohan Cho" (born June 16, 1972) is an American actor and musician of Korean descent, best known for his roles in the "American Pie" films (1999-2003) and the "Harold & Kumar" films (2004-2008). More recently, Cho has wrapped production on the new "Star Trek" film, in which he portrays Hikaru Sulu. His Korean name is Cho Yo Han
Biography
Personal life
Cho was born in Seoul, South Korea, and raised in Los Angeles, California, where his family settled in 1978. His father is a Christian minister. Cho graduated from Herbert Hoover High School in Glendale, California in 1990. He then attended the University of California, Berkeley, graduating in 1996 with a BA degree in English and proceeding to teach English at Pacific Hills School in West Hollywood, California. He is married to actress Kerri Higuchi and has a son.
Career
Cho began his career as a print model for Korean magazines, such as appearing in an ad for Enterprise Rent-A-Car. After graduating from Berkeley, he moved to Los Angeles, and worked with the Asian American theatre company, East West Players, appearing in Edward Sakamoto's "The Taste of Kona Coffee" in 1996, and Euijoon Kim's "My Tired Broke Ass Pontificating Slapstick Funk" in 2000. He gained attention with a small role in the 1999 comedy "American Pie", in which he popularized the slang term 'MILF'. His most successful starring role to date has been as Harold Lee in 2004's "Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle". Cho was one of the stars of the short-lived situation comedy, "Off Centre", and guest-starred on "Charmed" as a ghost. He was a co-star of the now-defunct Fox sitcom "Kitchen Confidential". Cho had supporting roles in "American Beauty", "Evolution", and "Down to Earth", and a minor role in "Bowfinger".
In 2002, Cho had a starring role in the ensemble cast of "Better Luck Tomorrow", a drama/dark comedy focusing on the travails of a group of Asian Americans living in Southern California who are academically successful, but socially discontented, and as a result engage in wantonly violent, criminal behavior. He was cast in NBC's new comedy "The Singles Table" September 2006, but the series never aired due to changes in scheduling and production. In 2006, Cho was selected as one of the sexiest men alive in "People" Magazine.
Cho appeared on July 2004 issue of "KoreAm Journal". He is the lead singer for Viva La Union, a Los Angeles band composed of former UCB and USC students. In 2007, Cho was added to the cast of "Ugly Betty" as a recurring regular. Cho plays Kenny, a best friend of accountant Henry Grubstick (played by Christopher Gorham). Cho has been cast as helmsman Hikaru Sulu in J. J. Abrams's upcoming Star Trek movie.
Cho appeared in Nas' 'Be a Nigger Too' music video along with various celebrities.
External links
Credit
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article about John Cho.
