Born in Gangwon-do in 1911, his real name is Nam Tae-won. In 1935, he entered the film industry with a small role in director Bang Han-jun's Sprinkler. Afterwards, he appeared in Lee Gyu-hwan's A New Beginning (1939) and Kim Yu-young's Daffodil (1940). He appeared in a number of propaganda and cultural films, including Choi In-gyu's Children of the Sun (1944) and Kyung-kyun Shin's Our War (1945). After liberation, he appeared in director Lee Kyu-hwan's The Adventures of Smart (1946) and director Yoon Yong-gyu's Hometown of the Heart (1949). He defected to North Korea during the Korean War.