Ex-NBA star Dennis Rodman departs Pyongyang, comments on visit
(1 Mar 2013) 1. Wide of car pulling up outside Sunan airport 2. Wide of US basketball star Dennis Rodman getting out of car, seen through window, zoom in to him hugging woman, pan and zoom out as he walks towards airport 3. Cutaway of media 4. SOUNDBITE (English) Dennis Rodman, US basketball star: "The most was that one thing, you know what, it was amazing how he was so honest. And one thing that, guess what, his grandfather, and his father were great leaders. And he's such a proud man." 5. Rodman talking to media 6. SOUNDBITE (English) Dennis Rodman, US basketball star: "He's proud, his country like him, and I like him, love him, love him, guess what, yes, yes, I love him, the guy's awesome." 7. Pan from media to Rodman shaking hands with and embracing North Korean official, zoom in as they pose for photos 8. Rodman shaking hands with North Korean officials and getting on airport bus 9. Tilt up of Rodman getting on plane 10. Cutaway of airport ground staff 11. Wide of plane taxiing STORYLINE: Former US basketball star Dennis Rodman left Pyongyang on Friday, saying he "loves" North Korea leader Kim Jong Un and calling him "really awesome". Ex-NBA player Rodman spent time with Kim during his visit to North Korea this week, watching the Harlem Globetrotters basketball team play, and later drinking and dining on sushi with him on Thursday evening. The encounter makes Rodman the most high-profile American to meet Kim since the young North Korean leader took power in December 2011, and takes place against a backdrop of tension between Washington and Pyongyang. North Korea conducted an underground nuclear test just two weeks ago, making clear the provocative act was a warning to the United States to drop what it considers a "hostile" policy toward the North. Speaking to media at Pyongyang's Sunan airport before he left, Rodman said of Kim that it was "amazing how he was so honest." "Guess what, his grandfather, and his father were great leaders, and he's such a proud man," he added. Rodman arrived in Pyongyang on Monday with three members of the professional Harlem Globetrotters basketball team. They were accompanied by a video crew from the New York-based VICE media company who are shooting an episode on North Korea for a new weekly television series. During Thursday's meeting, Kim, a diehard basketball fan, told the former Detroit Pistons and Chicago Bulls star that he hoped the visit would break the ice between the United States and North Korea, VICE founder Shane Smith said. Kim and Rodman chatted in English, but Kim primarily spoke in Korean through a translator, Smith said after speaking to the VICE crew in Pyongyang. North Korea and the U.S. fought on opposite sides of the three-year Korean War, which ended in a truce in 1953. The countries never signed a peace treaty and do not have diplomatic relations. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: / ap_archive Facebook: / aparchives Instagram: / apnews You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...
