 commander beverly crusher, m.d. (born beverly cheryl howard), played by actress gates mcfadden, is a fictional character on the science fiction television series star trek: the next generation and its subsequent spin-off films. she was a regular character in the show for all but the second of its seven seasons. she was the chief medical officer of both the enterprise-d and enterprise-e. ==casting== gates mcfadden was reluctant to accept the role of dr. crusher because of her commitment to appear in the play the matchmaker at the la jolla playhouse.adam schrager, the finest crew in the fleet: the next generation cast on screen and off. new york: wolf valley books (1997): 126 during the second season, the crusher character was written out of the show and replaced by the louder, more outgoing dr. katherine pulaski (diana muldaur). patrick stewart was upset by mcfadden's departure from the show and played a large part in bringing about her return. mcfadden returned to the show in the third season, with her character being reassigned to the enterprise. on the show, the explanation was given that her character "was off heading up starfleet medical for the year." upon her return, the character became more varied and more richly developed, and was not afraid to go head-to-head with picard. episodes featuring beverly crusher focused on her romantic life, often with unexpected alien lifeforms. ==early life== beverly crusher was born beverly howard on october 13, 2324 in copernicus city, luna."conundrum", star trek: the next generation, directed les landau. paramount pictures, released 15 february 1992 (dvd release 2002). further back, before the colonization of luna, her 
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