After the Lawsuit, Both Brother Writers' Health Deteriorates Significantly
The daughter of Lee Woo-jin, the nephew of the late popular cartoonist Lee Woo-young, who recently passed away and co-created the comic "Gomjeong Gomu-shin," has come forward to express the family's pain and grievances related to copyright disputes.
Lee Seon-min, daughter of Lee Woo-jin, the younger brother of Lee Woo-young, posted a lengthy message on her social media on the 27th beginning with "Please remember the late Lee Woo-young, the creator of Gomjeong Gomu-shin."
The late writer Lee Woo-young and writer Lee Woo-jin brothers in the past. [Photo source=Lee Seon-min, daughter of writer Lee Woo-jin's Instagram]
She expressed her pain, saying, "My proudest father is the creator of Gomjeong Gomu-shin. They made my father, who is the most precious person in the world to me and cannot be exchanged for anything, suffer. They broke down my uncle (the late Lee Woo-young), who was my father's older brother, best friend, and colleague. And they took away nearly ten years of time from the creators and their family." She continued with frustration, "They insisted that Gomjeong Gomu-shin, on which they never put a single dot during its creation, belonged to them, and they took away the work and life that my father and his brother had devoted their lives to."
"People think I have a building and no money worries"
Lee also shared her experience, saying, "When people meet me for the first time and hear that I am the daughter of the creator of Gomjeong Gomu-shin, they ask if I have a grand building. Some friends even hated me, thinking I was someone with no money worries and no worries about the future." She revealed the shocking truth, "My father had to do manual labor because he could not draw anything due to the lost copyrights. Although I grew up without lacking anything, I was also aware of the burden that weighed on our family."
She also revealed that both brothers, Lee Woo-young and Lee Woo-jin, suffered health deterioration due to the copyright lawsuit. Lee said, "My father and uncle, who had never had any significant health issues, have suffered serious health problems because of the lawsuit. My uncle was hospitalized in 2019 during the holidays due to dizziness caused by stress when the lawsuit began, and my father had to spend the New Year in the hospital at the end of 2022, suffering from high fever and pain caused by unexplained stomach pain due to stress."
In conclusion, she appealed, "Please pay a little more attention to the case that took away nearly ten years from Gomjeong Gomu-shin, its creators, and their families, who gifted readers warm moments and healing. We do not have the seasoned strength to handle such a huge ordeal," expressing her distress, "There is little I can do for my father, who seems to be breaking down completely."
Severe conflict after business rights contract with Hyeongseol Ahn in 2007
The late Lee Woo-young had been involved in copyright disputes with co-copyright holders for several years before passing away at his home on the 11th. After his death, claims have been raised that although more than 77 business ventures related to "Gomjeong Gomu-shin" have been commercialized over the past 15 years, the total amount Lee received was only 12 million won. "Gomjeong Gomu-shin" was illustrated by the brothers Lee Woo-young and Lee Woo-jin, with Lee Young-il responsible for the writing. The original creators of Gomjeong Gomu-shin signed a business rights contract with the character company Hyeongseol Ahn in 2007, but since then, they have had severe conflicts over profit distribution and secondary works.
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