James Kyson
James Kyson | |
|---|---|
 Kyson at the opening of the Animal Museum in December 2016 | |
| Born | Lee Ji-Hoon[1] December 13, 1975[citation needed] Seoul, South Korea |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 2003–present |
| Spouse(s) | Jamee Mae Berg (m. 2015) |
| Children | 2 |
James Kyson Lee[2] (born December 13, 1975) is an American actor best known for his television work. One of his best known roles was Ando Masahashi on the NBC television series Heroes, and he has also made guest appearances on television series such as Hawaii Five-0, NCIS: Los Angeles, Sleepy Hollow, Elementary, and Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders.
Early life and education[]
Kyson was born in Kim Ji-Hoon[1] in Seoul, South Korea. His father was an electrical engineer. He moved with his family to New York City at the age of 10, where he later attended The Bronx High School of Science.[3] His English name, James, is derived from James Bond.[1] He studied communications at Boston University with the intent of being a sports broadcaster before later transferring to the New England Institute of Art.[2][1]
In summer of 2001, Kyson sold his car and bought a one-way ticket to Los Angeles with the intent of entering the acting industry. He enrolled in performing arts classes at a community college while auditioning for roles and working as a SAT tutor to pay the bills.[4]
Acting career[]
After three years in Los Angeles, Kyson landed his first acting role on the military legal television drama JAG in 2003.[4][5][dead link]
He landed guest roles in hit network television series The West Wing and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation amongst others before being cast as one of his more widely known roles, Ando Masahashi in the sci-fi series Heroes. The role required him to speak Japanese.[4][6] He later stated that he had taken a semester of Japanese in college and did not find learning the language difficult as it was grammatically similar to Korean, which he is fluent in.[7][6]
Since Heroes ended, he also guest-starred on Hawaii Five-0, Justified, Animals., Sleepy Hollow, Elementary, and more recently Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders.
His feature films work includes the romantic comedy Another Time, the thriller The Livingston Gardener - and as a mixed martial arts fighter in the action feature Banana Season.
Kyson was a celebrity judge at the Miss Universe 2007 beauty pageant.[8]
Personal life[]
Kyson is married to singer and neuroscientist Jamee Kyson (née Berg) since 2015.[9]
He is fluent in Korean and learned Japanese to play Ando Masahashi in Heroes.[2]
Filmography[]
- JAG (2003) – Lieutenant Pak (1 episode, 2003)
- All About the Andersons (2003) – Josh
- Threat Matrix (2004) – Vargas Killer
- The West Wing (2004) – Chinese Translator Zheng
- Doberman (2005) – Johnny
- Heist (2006) – Universal Studio Guide
- On the Rocks (2006) – Donald Park
- Heroes (2006–2010) – Ando Masahashi
- Big Dreams Little Tokyo (2006) – Murakami
- Asian Stories (2006) – Jim Lee
- Las Vegas (2007) – Joon Ho Park
- The Darkness (2007) – voices of Peter Chen, Cops
- Shutter (2008) – Ritsuo
- Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe (2008) – voice of Shang Tsung
- Akira's Hip Hop Shop (2008) – Akira
- CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2009) – Korean Translator (1 episode – "Say Uncle")
- White on Rice (2009) – Tim Kim
- Hard Breakers (2009) – Evan
- Necrosis (2009) – Jerry
- How to Make Love to a Woman (2009) – Aaron
- Star Runners (2009) – Lei Chen
- WWII in HD (2009) – voice of Jimmie Kanaya
- Celebrity Ghost Stories (2009) – Himself
- Why Am I Doing This? (2009) – Eric
- Despicable Me (2010) – Additional Voices
- Hawaii Five-0 (2011) – Sean Leung
- Plush (2013) – Coat and Tie Fan
- Grand Theft Auto V (2013) – voice of The Local Population
- Justified (2014) – Yoon
- Ragamuffin (2014) - Matt Gast
- Fourth World (2015) – Legion
- The Livingston Gardender (2015) – Pierce Lawrence
- Animals (2016) – Boss
- School of Rock (2016) – David Kwon
- NCIS: Los Angeles (2016) – James Kang
- Convenience Store Diet (2016) – voice of Jacked Bro
- Preacher (2017) – The Technician (Season 2 episode 6 - "Sokoasha")
- Boone: the Bounty Hunter (2017) – Cameo
- No Trace (2017) – Detective Phil Chung
- (2017) – John 'Hoss' O'Tekjac
- Sleepy Hollow (2017) – Special Agent Mark Wong
- Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders (2017) – Inspector Joon-Ho Kim
- Elementary (2017) – Joey Ng
- The High Life (2017) – Chevy Lee
- Another Time (2018) – Kal
- Breaking & Exiting (2018) – Peter
- Banana Season (2018) – Sun
- Walk to Vegas (2019) – Wing
- Anthem (2019) – voice of Dr. Harken
- Lovecraft Country (2020) – Byung-Ho (1 episode – "Meet Me in Daegu")
- Next (2020) - Bill Zhai (1 episode - "File #7")
Other activities[]
Kyson plays basketball for "The Hollywood Knights", a charity celebrity team,[10] and participated in Robbie Williams' "Soccer Aid" for UNICEF, at Manchester United's Old Trafford in England.[citation needed] He is also an Ambassador for the International Organization Good Neighbors, and their "Water for Life" campaign.[citation needed]
Kyson represented the Rest of the World team in 2010 Soccer Aid, a British charity soccer match in aid of UNICEF.[11]
See also[]
- Masi Oka — Kyson's co-actor on Heroes
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d "Actor James Kyson". seouljournal.com. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c Vanni, Olivia (2008-11-24). "TV Hero James Kyson Lee was once hometown student". Boston Herald. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
- ^ Nuytens, Gilles (April 5, 2007). "James Kyson Lee interview - Heroes". www.thescifiworld.net. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c Leung, Julie (Fall 2008). "James Kyson Lee: The Sidekick's Story". Mochi.
- ^ "Ten Questions with Heroes Actor James Kyson Lee". TV.com. February 3, 2010.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Wolley, Leann (March 2, 2010). "Cross-cultural Acting: an interview with James Kyson Lee and Eriko Tamura". University of Southern California.
- ^ "Heroes Preview: Is Ando More Than Just a Trusty Sidekick?". TV Guide. January 22, 2007.
- ^ "Miss Japan wins Miss Universe 2007". Kokomo Tribune. May 28, 2007. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
- ^ Kantor, Jonathan H. (August 26, 2017). "Heroes: Where Are They Now?". CBR. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
- ^ "James Kyson Lee is mortal again and loving it", Sept 10, 2009, Michael Ordona, LA Times
- ^ Soccer Aid - Rest of the World team ITV Entertainment
External links[]
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- American male film actors
- American male stage actors
- American male television actors
- American male voice actors
- American male actors of Korean descent
- 1975 births
- Boston University College of Communication alumni
- The Bronx High School of Science alumni
- Living people
- Male actors from New York City
- New England Institute of Art alumni
- People from Seoul
- South Korean emigrants to the United States