Gates McFadden
Gates McFadden
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Cheryl Gates McFadden (born March 2, 1949), usually credited as Gates McFadden, is an American actress and choreographer. She is best known for portraying the character of Dr. Beverly Crusher in the television and film series Star Trek: The Next Generation. She attended Brandeis University earning B.A Cum Laude in Theater Arts. After graduating from Brandeis, she moved to Paris and studied theater with actor Jacques LeCoq. Before Star Trek: The Next Generation, she was mostly known as a choreographer, often working on Jim Henson productions including the films The Dark Crystal, for which she was a choreographer, Labyrinth, for which she served as Director of Choreography and Puppet Movement, and The Muppets Take Manhattan, in which she has a brief on-screen appearance. As a way of distinguishing her acting work from her choreography, she is usually credited as "Gates McFadden" as an actress and "Cheryl McFadden" as a choreographer. She appeared briefly in the Woody Allen film Stardust Memories, and in The Hunt for Red October as Jack Ryan's wife Cathy, though most of her scenes were cut in post-production. In 1987, McFadden was cast as Dr. Beverly Crusher on Star Trek: The Next Generation. The Crusher character was slated to be Captain Jean-Luc Picard's love interest, and this aspect of the character is what attracted McFadden to the role. Another important aspect of the character was being a widow balancing motherhood and a career. McFadden left after the first season, in part because series executive producer Gene Roddenberry was never enthusiastic about casting McFadden in the first place. Roddenberry also wanted to give the role of ship's doctor to actress Diana Muldaur, with whom he had worked on the original Star Trek series and other occasions. Muldaur's character, Dr. Katherine Pulaski, proved very unpopular with fans and left the show after the second season. McFadden was approached to return for the third season. At first she was hesitant, but after a phone call from co-star Patrick Stewart, McFadden was persuaded to reprise her role.
Known For
Actor
as Mother Askani (voice)
as Queen Marlena (voice)
as Dr. Beverly Crusher
as Dr. Crusher
as Self
as Self / Narrator
as Dr. Beverly Crusher (voice)
as Beverly Crusher (voice)
as Madame Hexxina
as Dr. Beverly Crusher
as Self & Narrator
as Self
as Dr. Constance Abrams
as Self
as Nurse
as Self
as Dr. Beverly Crusher (archive footage)
as Self
as Judge Mallory Jacobs
as Martha Stanford
as Wife
as Dr. Beverly Crusher
as Gates McFadden (voice)
as Doctor Beverly Crusher
as Patrice Baxter
as Commander Beverly Crusher
as Dr. Beverly Crusher (archive footage)
as Dr. Beverly Crusher (archive footage)
as Dr. Beverly Crusher (archive footage)
as Kimba
as Dr. Beverly Crusher
as Doctor Beverly Crusher
as Beverly Crusher
as Dr. Beverly Crusher (archive footage)
as Allison Rourke
as Beverly Crusher (archive footage)
as Diane Connors
as Caroline Ryan
as Ina Dreikoff
as Beverly Crusher
as Self
as Self
as Mr. Price's Secretary
as Self - Audience Member (uncredited)
Director
as Director
Producer
as Executive Producer