The names Cho Tat-wah and Shih Kien were synonymous to "good and evil" in the colloquial language of Hong Kong because of the roles the two actors played in those movies.

The two names Cho Tat-wah and Yu So-chow symbolized a perfect couple.

His well-known roles include Lung Kim-fei (龍劍飛), Leung Foon (梁寛) and Inspector Wah (華探長).

A native of Taishan, Guangdong, (he spoke Cantonese and Taishanese) Cho began his actor career at the age of 15, and eventually starred in more than 700 movies.

Legend has it that he lost the Wah-tat Studio, which produced most of his movies at the time, at the gambling table.