Ji Min Kim

Ji Min Kim is a fictional character in the CBS soap opera The Young and the Restless, portrayed from October 4, 2006 to September 4, 2007 by actor Eric Steinberg. Initially the character was originally only a recurring guest, but was soon upgraded to contract status.

Character Biography

Ji Min entered the The Young and the Restless canvas as the owner of 'House of Kim', a dummy corporation that Jack Abbott (played by Peter Bergman) had set up so that he could secretly buy back Jabot Cosmetics from Katherine Chancellor (Jeanne Cooper). Ji Min quickly became embroiled in the corporate intrigue surrounding Katherine, Jack and Victor (Eric Braeden).

Ji Min had recently become interested in Jill Abbott (Jess Walton), and was consistent in asking her out for drinks and meals. Jack's bitter former stepmother, Gloria (Judith Chapman), with the help of her son Kevin (Greg Rikaart), had been monitoring the security cameras in Ji Min's office, determined to prove that Jack was the one pulling the strings at Jabot. Gloria had also been slipping Jill sexual enhancement drugs to ensure that she and Ji Min had sex in the office, thus destroying Jill's relationship with William Bardwell (Ted Shackelford).

Although Gloria's plan may have been successful in ending any possibly of a Jill and William pairing, it also was successful in uniting Jill and Ji Min, who found they had an attraction to each other outside of a libido enhancer. Recently, Jill and Ji Min stumbled upon Gloria's scheme, when Jill's routine physical showed an abnormal amount of hormones. Ji Min, a self-professed chemist, and Jill figured out what Gloria had done and were last seen plotting their payback while at the Extreme Catwalk shoot. Jill spiked Gloria's and Evan's coffee, trying to do to her what she had done to them. Evan and Gloria did have a tryst, but unfortunately, William came by too late to catch them in the act.

Katherine, Jill's mother and CEO of Chancellor Industries, was not a fan of Ji Min. Due to his involvement with Jack's Jabot scheme Katharine distrusted Ji Min and did not like his involvement with her daughter. Katherine bought Jabot back from Jack and wanted Ji Min to leave Genoa City. Although Kim confessed that he had always found his calling as that of an evil math teacher, he nevertheless stayed in the City. Trying to make her daughter end her relationship with Ji Min, Katherine gave Jill an ultimatum: the man or the job. Either she remained Jabot's CEO and gave up her relationship with Ji Min; or she stepped down as CEO, which would allow Ji Min to be CEO, and therefore keep her man. Jill decided to keep her man.

He proposed to Jill and the two were engaged. He was let go from Jabot by Katherine, who felt he was not trustworthy, and began working with Jill to start their own company, which would compete with Jabot Cosmetics.

On September 4, 2007 Ji Min was found dead in his room at the Genoa City Athletic Club. The cause of death was strangulation; however, was not known by whom but evidence suggested that it was either Jack Abbott or Victor Newman. Later video footage suggested it was Victor and he was arrested. On July 1, 2008, flashbacks suggested that David Chow, acting on loanshark Walter Palin's behalf, killed Ji Min as a way to "pay off a debt." Later, Paul Williams concluded that Ji-Min had been murdered after discovering that Walter and David had mob connections; he had been silenced when he attempted to break free of their influence.