---
name: "Chao Li Chi"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/chao-li-chi"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "5 April 1927"
died: "16 October 2010"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 3
average_fi1m_score: 82
updated: "2026-09-16T21:20:59.095198+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Chao Li Chi

Actor. Born 5 April 1927 in Shanxi Province, China. Died 16 October 2010.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 5 April 1927, Shanxi Province, China
- **Died:** 16 October 2010
- **Active:** 1972–2006
- **Also known as:** 冀朝理, Chaoli Chi, Chi Chaoli, Chao-Li-Chi, Chao-Li Chi

## Biography

Chao-Li Chi (also credited as Chao Li Chi) was a Chinese-American actor and dancer. Born in Shanxi Province, China, he emigrated to New York City at the age of twelve as a refugee from the Second Sino-Japanese War. He studied acting through Pearl S. Buck's East-and-West Association and made his screen debut in Maya Deren's short film *Meditation on Violence* (1949), having toured with her as a dancer incorporating Taoist and martial arts disciplines.

He settled in Los Angeles and worked as a character actor in film and television. His best-known role was as the loyal majordomo Chao-Li in the CBS series *Falcon Crest* (1981–1990), appearing across all nine seasons. Film credits include *Big Trouble in Little China* (1986) as Uncle Chu, *The Joy Luck Club* (1993), *The Nutty Professor* (1996), *Blood Work* (2002), *Wedding Crashers* (2005) and *The Prestige* (2006).

Chi co-founded the Taoist Institute in North Hollywood and taught t'ai chi classes weekly for thirty years. He died on 16 October 2010 in Granada Hills, California.

*Sources: imdb.com, en.wikipedia.org.*

## On Fi1m (3)

- *The Prestige* (2006), Fi1m 82, as Chung Ling Soo — [page](https://film.one/film/the-prestige.md)
- *Big Trouble in Little China* (1986), Fi1m 78, as Uncle Chu — [page](https://film.one/film/big-trouble-in-little-china.md)
- *M*A*S*H* (1972), Fi1m 85, as Korean Husband — [page](https://film.one/tv/m-a-s-h-1972.md)

## Also known for

- *Wedding Crashers* (2005), Old Chinese Man
- *The Nutty Professor* (1996), Asian Man
- *Batman: The Animated Series* (1992), Yoru (voice)
- *Blood Work* (2002), Mr. Kang
- *Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story* (1993), Elder
- *The Master of Disguise* (2002), Mongolian
- *American Dreamz* (2006), Chinese Premiere
- *The Big Brawl* (1980), Kwan

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/chao-li-chi