Cartoonist Lee Woo-young of 'Gomjeong Gomu-shin' Found Dead at Home

Suspected Extreme Choice
Copyright Lawsuit Until Recently

Lee Woo-young (51), the artist who drew the comic 'Geomeongomusin,' was found dead at his home. It is presumed to be a result of an extreme choice.

According to the Ganghwa Police Station in Incheon on the 12th, Lee's family reported to the police around 7 p.m. the previous day after there was no sign of him and the door was locked at a house in Seonwon-myeon, Ganghwa-gun, Incheon.

In KBS2's , set in the 1960s, the cartoon protagonist falls ill wanting to eat rare and expensive bananas, then sheds tears of joy after eating the bananas his family brought home. Photo by Geomeongomusin capture

The police, along with the fire department, forced open the door and found Lee deceased inside.

Investigations suggest that Lee took his own life. Although no suicide note was found, the police decided not to conduct an autopsy in accordance with the wishes of the bereaved family.

Lee had been dealing with copyright litigation issues until recently.

In 2019, Lee was involved in a legal dispute over profit distribution with co-authors of the comic's copyright. Last year, ahead of the release of the animation 'Geomeongomusin the Movie: My Happy Home,' a character agency created secondary works without his permission, raising copyright controversies.

'Geomeongomusin' was serialized in 'Boy Champ' from 1992 to 2006. It set the record for the longest serialization at the time and was published as a 45-volume book series. Artists Lee Woo-young and Lee Woo-jin illustrated it, while Lee Young-il wrote the story.