In 2004, the year he turned 25, he debuted as a comedian in KBS’s 19th open recruitment, with his Ongdalsaem teammates Yoo Se-yoon and Yoo Sang-moo.
The breakthrough yearIn 2005, the year he turned 26, he became known through several sketches on Gag Concert, including a clumsy private in Shin Dongjakgeuman and a school security guard in Bongsunga School. At the end of that year he won the excellence award in comedy (male) at the KBS Entertainment Awards.
In 2006, he played the son of Kim Dae-hee and Shin Bong-sun in We Need to Talk. In 2007, he won the best corner award in comedy at the KBS Entertainment Awards for the same sketch. In 2008, he played the grandmother in Grandma Is Angry.
In 2010, he hosted an MBC FM4U radio program with Yoo Se-yoon and Yoo Sang-moo. In 2011, he won season 1 of Comedy Big League as Ongdalsaem.
In 2014, he won tvN’s The Genius: Black Garnet. In April 2015, over a controversy about offensive remarks, he withdrew as a candidate for Infinite Challenge’s Sixth Man project and left his KBS radio DJ post, and apologized at a press conference. In September, he won The Genius: Grand Final for a second year in a row.
In 2016, when a line in a sketch was criticized as mocking single-parent families, he apologized and left Comedy Big League and Look Back at Me. In 2017, he returned to Gag Concert, and in November he won Society Game: Season 2. In 2018, he appeared on E Channel’s Talking Unification: Joint Study Area JSA.
In 2019, he became a regular on MBC’s Where Is My Home. In 2021, he was a regular on Channel A’s Steel Troops, and he married in December. That month he also won the excellence award in variety at the MBC Entertainment Awards.
In 2022, his first child, a daughter, was born. In 2023, he became a regular on tvN and tvN STORY’s Golf Star K and founded the eco-friendly startup Pureunhaneul. In October he was named ambassador of the Seoul Hockey Association. In 2024, his second child, a son, was born, and in October he won the Asian Poker Tour Taiwan team event.
In 2025, he won Wavve’s Game of Blood 3, and in April Pureunhaneul signed an agreement to commercialize its PET bottle label. In 2026, he won a brain survival game for the fifth time with Betting on Fact and obtained another eco-friendly patent. In July, it was reported that he would appear in Netflix’s The Devil’s Plan 3.
Jang Dong-min (born Jul 20, 1979) debuted in 2004, the year he turned 25, as a comedian in KBS’s 19th open recruitment, and became known in 2005, the year he turned 26, through several sketches on Gag Concert. He won his first brain survival game in 2014, the year he turned 35, with The Genius: Black Garnet.
Ages are by calendar year (the year minus the birth year), birthdays aside.
He debuted as a comedian in KBS’s 19th open recruitment, alongside his Ongdalsaem teammates Yoo Se-yoon and Yoo Sang-moo.
Source 01 · Kukje Shinmun (Korean) · Jang Dong-min returns to Gag Concert · opens in a new tabSource 04 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Jang Dong-min · opens in a new tab The exact date of his debut was not confirmed.On Gag Concert he played a clumsy private in Shin Dongjakgeuman and a school security guard in Bongsunga School. He also appeared in the 3.6.9 sketch of Poksoclub, and Maekyung Economy wrote that he steadily ranked in the top three of comedian searches on portal sites.
He won the excellence award in comedy (male) at the 4th KBS Entertainment Awards.
Source 04 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Jang Dong-min · opens in a new tabSource 03 · OSEN (Korean) · Named ambassador of the Seoul Hockey Association · opens in a new tab The date of the ceremony was not confirmed.In We Need to Talk on KBS2’s Gag Concert, he played Dong-min, the son of Kim Dae-hee and Shin Bong-sun, until November 2008.
Source 04 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Jang Dong-min · opens in a new tab The date is based on Wikipedia and was not confirmed in news reports.He won the best corner award in comedy at the 6th KBS Entertainment Awards for We Need to Talk on Gag Concert.
Source 04 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Jang Dong-min · opens in a new tabSource 03 · OSEN (Korean) · Named ambassador of the Seoul Hockey Association · opens in a new tab The date of the ceremony was not confirmed.He played the grandmother in KBS2’s Grandma Is Angry, appearing until September of the next year.
Source 04 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Jang Dong-min · opens in a new tab The date is based on Wikipedia and was not confirmed in news reports.He hosted the radio program with Yoo Se-yoon and Yoo Sang-moo.
Source 04 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Jang Dong-min · opens in a new tab The start date is based on Wikipedia and was not confirmed in news reports.With Yoo Se-yoon and Yoo Sang-moo, he led throughout the season and won. They received prize money of 100 million won.
Source 05 · Newsen (Korean) · Comedy Big League: Ongdalsaem wins · opens in a new tabSource 06 · Asia Economy (Korean) · Jang Dong-min’s PC cafe opening · opens in a new tabHe faced Oh Hyun-min in the final and won.
Source 07 · Korea Economic Daily TV (Korean) · The Genius 3: Jang Dong-min, the contender who took the Black Garnet · opens in a new tabOver a controversy about offensive remarks, he held an emergency press conference with Yoo Se-yoon and Yoo Sang-moo and apologized. He had earlier withdrew as a candidate for Infinite Challenge’s Sixth Man project and left his KBS radio DJ post.
Source 08 · Korea Economic Daily (Korean) · Ongdalsaem’s Jang Dong-min, Yoo Se-yoon and Yoo Sang-moo apologize at press conference · opens in a new tabHe beat Kim Kyung-hoon in the final to win for a second year in a row. The winner’s prize of 132 million won was the largest in the show’s history.
Source 09 · TV Daily (Korean) · The Genius 4: Jang Dong-min beats Kim Kyung-hoon in the grand final · opens in a new tabSource 10 · Nocut News (Korean) · The top genius Jang Dong-min · opens in a new tabWhen a line in the Comedy Big League sketch The Power of Chungcheong was criticized as mocking single-parent families, he apologized on social media and left Comedy Big League. He also left KBS2’s Look Back at Me after one appearance.
Source 11 · Korea Economic Daily (Korean) · Jang Dong-min apologizes over remarks on single-parent families · opens in a new tabSource 12 · Yonhap News Agency (Korean) · Jang Dong-min leaves KBS2’s Look Back at Me · opens in a new tabAt a press conference, he said he would return as the father of the college student Kim Dae-hee in We Need to Talk 1987.
Source 13 · News1 (Korean) · Jang Dong-min on Gag Concert: a gag no one finds offensive · opens in a new tabSource 14 · News1 (Korean) · Jang Dong-min returns as Kim Dae-hee’s father · opens in a new tabHe led team Nopdong on the last day, and Nopdong beat Madong in the final challenge to win.
Source 15 · Seoul Economic Daily (Korean) · Society Game 2’s winner is Jang Dong-min · opens in a new tabSource 16 · OSEN (Korean) · Society Game 2 ends: Nopdong wins the final · opens in a new tabHe appeared as one of five South Korean representatives on the unification talk show hosted by Kim Gu-ra and Kim Sung-joo.
Source 17 · Sports Chosun (Korean) · First look at JSA filming · opens in a new tabHe became a regular on the variety show that presents real estate listings.
Source 04 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Jang Dong-min · opens in a new tab The start date is based on Wikipedia and was not confirmed in news reports.He was a regular on the variety show in which current and former special forces members compete.
Source 04 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Jang Dong-min · opens in a new tab Based on Wikipedia and not confirmed in news reports.He married a partner six years younger, who is not in show business, on Jeju Island. The marriage was announced 13 days earlier, on Dec. 6.
Source 18 · Seoul Economic Daily (Korean) · Jang Dong-min announces a surprise wedding on the 19th · opens in a new tabSource 19 · Sports Kyunghyang (Korean) · Jang Dong-min marries today · opens in a new tabHe won the excellence award for Where Is My Home.
Source 20 · Joynews24 (Korean) · 2021 MBC Entertainment Awards: excellence award for Jang Dong-min · opens in a new tabSource 21 · Sports Donga (Korean) · Jang Dong-min wins an excellence award for Where Is My Home · opens in a new tabHe registered the birth of a daughter.
Source 22 · Herald POP (Korean) · Jang Dong-min registers his daughter’s birth · opens in a new tabSource 23 · OSEN (Korean) · Jang Dong-min registers his treasured daughter’s birth · opens in a new tabHe became a regular on a variety show about golf.
Source 04 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Jang Dong-min · opens in a new tab The start date is based on Wikipedia and was not confirmed in news reports.He founded the startup Pureunhaneul (Blue Sky), built on a PET bottle label separation technology he patented in 2022, and that year won an excellence award at the Environmental Startup Competition hosted by the Ministry of Environment.
Source 30 · Geumgang Ilbo (Korean) · The brain of comedy signs an MOU on eco-friendly patented technology · opens in a new tabHe was named ambassador together with the comedian Kim Jun-ho.
Source 03 · OSEN (Korean) · Named ambassador of the Seoul Hockey Association · opens in a new tabA son was born.
Source 24 · News1 (Korean) · Jang Dong-min has a second child, a son, today · opens in a new tabHe said on social media on the 7th that he had won the team event at the APT tournament held in Taiwan from Sept. 27.
Source 25 · Top Star News (Korean) · Jang Dong-min wins an Asian Poker Tour hold’em tournament · opens in a new tabSource 26 · MyDaily (Korean) · As expected of the Genius: Jang Dong-min wins Asia’s largest hold’em tournament · opens in a new tabThe season, first released on Nov. 15, 2024, ended that day. He reached the final four with Hong Jin-ho, Acau and Heo Seong-beom and won.
Source 27 · Maeil Business Newspaper (Korean) · Interview: Game of Blood 3 winner Jang Dong-min · opens in a new tabSource 28 · Ilgan Sports (Korean) · Game of Blood 3: Jang Dong-min on winning · opens in a new tabPureunhaneul, which he heads, signed a three-party agreement with Kwangdong Pharmaceutical and Samyang Packaging to develop and produce PET bottle labels. In the technology, the label separates automatically when the bottle cap is turned.
Source 29 · Segye Ilbo (Korean) · Just turn the cap and it’s done: Jang Dong-min’s invention · opens in a new tabSource 30 · Geumgang Ilbo (Korean) · The brain of comedy signs an MOU on eco-friendly patented technology · opens in a new tabHe won a brain survival game for the fifth time, after The Genius: Black Garnet, The Genius: Grand Final, Society Game: Season 2 and Game of Blood 3. SPOTV News wrote that he had won every brain survival game he entered, a win rate of 100%.
Source 31 · SPOTV News (Korean) · 100% win rate: Jang Dong-min’s fifth survival win · opens in a new tabHe obtained another patent for eco-friendly technology and launched Eco Ring, which reduces plastic use.
Source 32 · Edaily (Korean) · The Genius’s Jang Dong-min adds an eco-friendly patent · opens in a new tabSource 33 · Herald Business (Korean) · Jang Dong-min gets another eco-friendly patent · opens in a new tabMyDaily reported exclusively that he had taken part in Netflix’s The Devil’s Plan 3.
Source 34 · MyDaily (Korean) · [Exclusive] The final boss arrives: Jang Dong-min in The Devil’s Plan 3 · opens in a new tabSource 35 · Geumgang Ilbo (Korean) · The Genius legends turn out · opens in a new tabEND OF SELECTED RECORDSSelected records, 2004–2026 · not a complete list of work. “Key moment” is an editorial label, not a measure of success.
What did they do, and at what age?
AgeTrail lines up the key moments of a life by age.
Debut and breakthrough are marked separately, and every record has a source.
Comedy · South Korea
Jul 20, 1979 —
Ages are counted from the birth year 1979: the year of the event minus 1979, birthdays aside. “Key moment” labels and the connecting story are AgeTrail's editorial reading.
Fact-checked: 2026.09.29 · An independent archive, not affiliated with the person or their agency.