CAH: How did you start publishing the series of Gobau in newspaper?
Kim: In 1949, when I was just 18, Mungtunggury (a stupid person) was my debut in the Yonhap Daily. I lived with a student who paid his own tuition by delivering news papers. At that time, I drew many cartoon etudes. One day, he showed some of etudes to the culture desk director. The next day the director came home and offered me to run a series. Of course I accepted. It was the start of comic strips among the newspapers in that time. And I remember that other korean press started to print cartoons in theirs.

CAH: Then have you ever learned about cartoons or drawings before start publishing?
Kim: Actually I studied oriental painting. And my father was an oriental painter. But about cartoons, I practiced alone. I drew about 200 characters as etudes. Comic magazines were helpful to me to practice comic. Gobau is one of the characters I made while the practice.

CAH: Gobau was ended in 2000 as 14,139 pieces. Have you felt something lacking after the end of Gobau?
Kim: Actually I have not. I felt not lacking but relieved. Because I was so strained everyday to publish a comic a day for 50 years. But it was not a reason that I finished Gobau’s story. From the beginning, I thought it would be a long work for my life to publish Gobau’s section in a newspaper for several decades. So, I just think that I finished my work as I planned before.

CAH: How much is the Gobau significant to you?
Kim: 50 years is not a short time. However, above the period of serial publication, the birth of Gobau is a more good reason for my value. It was during the Korean War that I made Grandpa Gobau in a life as a war refugee. From the beginning, Gobau shared my joys and hardships with me. Besides Gobau, during the war, I made about 200 characters for cartoons.
There is an exhibition hall for Gobau in the National library of Korea. There are not many cartoon works in the library and Gobau is the only one exhibited as a cartoon character. I think the reason is that of course it is one of the oldest cartoon in Korea. But the main reason is the material of the works. In my ages, there were few cartoonists who collect their cartoon materials. But I have gathered all the stuffs about my works like my first cartoon in the newspaper. And Because of my materials, there were some offers about memorial hall.

CAH: Was there any burden because your cartoons were so popular and had big influence?
Kim: Maybe little. But it was hard to feel my cartoon’s big influence in everyday life in Korea. Making cartoons in Korea were not decent job. Some reporters in newspaper office thought me just as a person who can scribble well. However, when I was invited to foreign countries, I was an honored guest there. I went to Britain, Germany, America and Japan to observe the press of the countries. There were no pressures on debate about their government or president. It made me feel a deep grief about the situation of the press in Korea.

His publishing was not so peaceful. His section in newspapers was not filled in a fixed period because Korea Central Intelligence Agency (KCIA) took him to a cell because of the intention of some works which criticized the government or the president. For example, the gist of “Night Soil of Gyeongmudae” is that in the government Liberal Party took power, even a night soil man in Gyeongmudae gets power. So CAH thought he could've wanted to quit the Gobau’s publishing maybe because of the pressure.

CAH: Is there any moments you thought why you have to continue publishing in bad situations?
Kim: I have not thought in that way, like cancelling the publish. Of course it was a hard situation. It was a huge pressure to me as a cartoonist because my cartoons were always watched and resisted. Internally, the chief editor of the newspaper refused my manuscripts. And there were also external interferes from government. So I was helpless on my cartoon and I felt powerless. At that time, just readers were my only props. When my section in paper does not appeared, readers were worried about me and send many letters of worry or encouragement.
And one day I arrested again, there was foreign news didn’t report. The contents were that a cartoonist in Korea is arrested for his cartoon criticizing Korean government and there was a violent situation in a cell. I remember they were the Newsweek and The Washington Post. Reporters asked me that was there any violence. Actually, when I arrested, I spoke impolitely on purpose. I thought I would rather have a punch or something to make the despotic government to be in a trouble.

CAH: You did not publish any strip cartoons since 2000. What would you want to do in the future?
Kim: After the completion of Gobau, I had a several exhibitions for my works. The latest one was the exhibition of pictures and writings with Gobau. I am preparing another display for the year after another. The theme of the display is ‘When the time is long ago and far away’. There will be a scenery of rural communities. I want to express the life of rural people and the old houses in a realistic and lively way. Like a straw-thatched roof not in yellow but in turbid color to describe real life.

He said the name ‘Gobau’ meaning ‘a big rock’. Grandpa Gobau was a big rock in a huge mountain. He looks over our nation and keeps on telling hard truths to us.

Gobau lived with us since the 50s. With stumpy head, and a bent hair likes an antenna.
…
With Our feelings, our truth and our drollery and criticism, Here comes half a century before we know.
He made us to be unpretendingly.
As unexhausted Gobau. Gobau; Kim Song-whan.
- Poem Gobau, by Ko Un.