Template:Realworld Cheryl Gates McFadden (born 2 March 1949; age 75) has portrayed Beverly Crusher, MD, in most episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation and the last four Star Trek films. McFadden also directed the TNG episode "Genesis" and choreographed the dance routine in "Data's Day".
McFadden left the series during the second season, replaced by Diana Muldaur as Doctor Katherine Pulaski. Officially, the producers felt that the character of Crusher had not developed as well as they had hoped. Unofficially, there were some disagreements between the show's producers and McFadden as to how the character should develop, which may have led to some bad blood between her and several executive producers, resulting in McFadden's being released from her contract before the second season. (citation needed • edit) But thanks to a letter-writing campaign, support from Patrick Stewart, and a personal invitation from Rick Berman, McFadden was brought back to the TNG cast for the third and subsequent seasons. McFadden was absent for all episodes of the second season and only appeared in stock footage during TNG: "Shades of Gray".
During her break from Star Trek, McFadden played Jack Ryan's wife in the movie The Hunt for Red October, although most of her scenes were edited from the film.
McFadden became pregnant with her first child during the fourth season of TNG, learning of the pregnancy only days after performing her own stunts for the episode "Remember Me". This explains her absence during the last part of the season. Although the directors were able to hide her pregnancy behind objects and Crusher's trademark lab coat, it was briefly visible in some episodes, including "The Host". Her son was born over hiatus; Brent Spiner is his godfather. McFadden has been quoted as saying her son grew up on the bridge of the USS Enterprise, and he was upset when the sets were torn down following Star Trek Generations.
Gates McFadden is an accomplished dancer and puppeteer; she worked on several Jim Henson productions as a choreographer, most notably in the film Labyrinth (she also choreographed movement for The Dark Crystal, and made her film acting debut in The Muppets Take Manhattan) . She prefers stage roles to television, and has been seen in countless productions over her career. She is trained in stage swordfighting; ironically, only she and Marina Sirtis were trained in the technique which was featured in TNG: "Qpid" but only the male characters were allowed to use swords.
In 1992, McFadden appeared alongside fellow castmembers Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, Brent Spiner, and Colm Meaney in a production of "Every Good Boy Deserves Favour," which was performed in four cities.
Trivia
- Ensign Gates, the conn officer played by Joyce Robinson and seen throughout the seventh season, was named for her. (Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion)
- McFadden starred in the short-lived drama Marker, which was one of the pilot series on UPN alongside Star Trek: Voyager.
- McFadden's birth date is somewhat unclear; official promotional material from Paramount Pictures lists her birthday as August 28, 1953 while the IMDb lists it as March 2, 1949. Public records indicate that a "Cheryl G. McFadden" was born in 1949 and McFadden has admitted that she makes up dates since she is uncomfortable with revealing her true birth date. Given that she graduated from Brandeis in 1970, it is likely that she was born before 1953.
- She stars in the Microsoft People Ready Business commercials aired on television
- McFadden was disappointed by Crusher's lack of screen time, especially during the movies. There were rumors floating around before Star Trek Nemesis began filming that stated she would not return. (citation needed • edit)
Additional characters
Appearances on Star Trek
- Star Trek: The Next Generation
- Season One
- Season Two: "Shades of Gray" (archive footage)
- Season Three to Season Seven
- (all episodes except "The Wounded")
- Star Trek Generations (1994)
- Star Trek: First Contact (1996)
- Star Trek: Insurrection (1998)
- Star Trek Nemesis (2002)
| Star Trek: The Next Generation regular cast |
|---|
| Starring: Patrick Stewart • Jonathan Frakes • Brent Spiner |
| Also starring: LeVar Burton • Denise Crosby • Michael Dorn • Gates McFadden • Diana Muldaur • Marina Sirtis • Wil Wheaton |
External links
- Gates McFadden at Wikipedia
- Template:IMDb-link
- Gates McFadden at TriviaTribute.com - pictures, sound clips and trivia