Gates McFadden actual hair

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Often actors will wear wigs because it cuts down on time in the makeup chair, because the wig can be styled without the actor being present. It also saves the actor's own hair from being damaged by the level of styling that's required.

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TypeBNegative42@reddit

In particular, hair dying can be brutal on hair. To keep roots the same, they need to dye blonde then darken as desired, which can make hair very thin and brittle. A wig is just easier.

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mcgrst@reddit

I think that's what happened to Tricia Helfer in BSG, she ended losing her hair.

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BladePocok@reddit

She's doing fine 16 years later, thank you.

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herbuck@reddit

That doesn't really apply here though, because Gates McFadden already has red hair. No need to dye it.

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rpb192@reddit

Neither of those are her natural colour though, they’ve both been beefed up with colour

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Attican101@reddit

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I saw an interview with Tricia Helfer, were she said she was pulling out clumps of hair by the end, from the weekly bleaching/dye for the early seasons of Battlestar Galactica, then they finally got her a wig.

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BladePocok@reddit

It also saves the actor's own hair from being damaged by the level of styling that's required.

What do you mean "required"? By who and to whom?

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Enchelion@reddit

It also means the character can have a consistent 'do, without the actor being stuck with a particular hairstyle the whole time they're shooting. Like, actors getting haircuts often needs to be discussed with the production team if they don't use a wig.

I was reading a story about Ensign Gomez's actress not being sure they needed her back for any shooting days and wanting to get a haircut, so she had her manager call the production to get permission, and they told her to go ahead . Then she got called back unexpectedly for pickups and hair/makeup were throwing a fit because she now had short hair and they had to figure out extensions last minute.

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nebelmorineko@reddit

Apparently, the studio lights were so hot that over the long day of shooting the sweat + heat would mess up the soft wavy hairdo they wanted for her, like it would sag slightly over time so they had to keep fixing it so the wave was the same without shellacking it. It took too much time so they switched to wigs, I guess they were easier to set and if Gates sweated it would stay under the cap and not mess up the wig. Remember, their uniforms were wool too, so they were getting super hot under the lights.

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aroura5672@reddit

Didn't I read somewhere a while back that her hair was the reason she left, and that's when they brought Pulaski in for her stint? Something about disagreeing over how difficult it was to style her hair (n how long it took) in season 1, or something...n that's y when she came back she started using the wig..unless this was some kinda fake news bs thing i had read that I am now remembering as something real lol...?

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half_in_boxes@reddit

She left because she was being sexually harassed by a staff writer and the producers refused to do anything about it.

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Lawnmover_Man@reddit

Any source on this? Just asking.

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half_in_boxes@reddit

Google her name and Maurice Hurley. Most of what you'll find talks about his dislike of how she handled her character and her job, but dig through the results and you'll find multiple primary sources stating he was a huge misogynist and at least one interview with Gates stating that his contempt went way beyond professional boundaries and was largely aimed at her as a woman rather than her as an actor.

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Mr_SunnyBones@reddit

Also that arsehole is the reason "Up the long ladder" exists.

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Lawnmover_Man@reddit

Nothing of what you just said is sexual harassment. Are there sources of him sexually harassing her?

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aroura5672@reddit

Well that's shitty...ig the article i read a while back was bs then..ty for clearing that up for me. (Btw, no hate on Gates at all, i was just asking cuz i knew i had read that at some point n wasn't sure about it's substance).

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Machinax@reddit

From what I remember reading, it was that she clashed with Maurice Hurley over the characterization of Dr. Crusher.

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Theborgiseverywhere@reddit

FYI Marina also regularly wore wigs for TNG

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gwhh@reddit

Didn’t know that.

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SirFritz@reddit

Yeah think only time it was her real hair was the pilot.

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Dave_A480@reddit

Part of it is consistency & the limited resolution of TV.

Part of it is just being able to 'take off' work at the end of the day rather than having all of the stuff required to do your job attached to your actual body when you go home.

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TheRealCOCOViper@reddit

She had really thin/fine hair that wouldn’t film well under harsh studio lights

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aflyingsquanch@reddit

Its easier and less damaging to her real hair to just go with a wig.

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International-Aide37@reddit

I just noticed she's the same rank as Riker. I can't ever remember an episode where she is refered to by her rank instead of just Doctor Crusher.

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kkkan2020@reddit (OP)

Yeah she's the same rank but riker is younger and first officer so that gives him positions authority over crusher outside of medical stuff

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HellyOHaint@reddit

As a fellow redhead, it’s crazy how much our hair color can change. Sometimes strawberry blond, sometimes basically dark brunette with some red hues.

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MiraLeaps@reddit

Thissss. My hair always seems to lighten up around spring and summer and then get dull later

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SilIowa@reddit

I married a redhead, and she went completely blonde by 30.

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PAWGLuvr84Plus@reddit

I envy you. You got the best of both worlds.

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SilIowa@reddit

How dare you give such a perfect response. I doff my cap to you, sir!

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CO420Tech@reddit

Mine was bright orange/red as a kid, then once I hit puberty it slowly transitioned to darker red, then brown red, and eventually just brown with strong red highlights. Now it is skipping gray and hairs are just turning bright white. Luckily the white is coming in in very uniform places that look cool - especially my beard because it has two white stripes on each side of the center of my chin.

However, if I spend a lot of time outdoors for a couple weeks it transitions right back to a much more vibrant red.

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Mini_Marauder@reddit

Apparently redheads fading straight to white is a documented thing. When my family learned that we thought back to my grandmother and realized that's exactly what happened with her. She had beautiful, vibrant orange hair and just went directly to white when she got old. I'm really curious to see how that will effect me, since I'm actually blonde, but my beard comes in bright burning red.

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dotknott@reddit

My grandfather was always called “Red” growing up… I thought it was just another non-sensical nickname like Jack is for John…. Then I found out he was color blind and figured his brothers gave him the nickname to rag on him.

Nope. Turns out it was because he’d had red hair, but it went white before I was born so I’d never seen it.

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medicmatt@reddit

How was your grandmother’s beard?

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pouxdoux69@reddit

Mine was almost white blond until I was about 5, then it started getting more brown with red hilights, esp. when I'm in the sun a lot, my beard has always been slightly dark red.

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HellyOHaint@reddit

Mine was auburn as a kid and still now but darker. In the winter, no one believes I’m a redhead but they don’t understand how my temples/side burns are bright ginger, the rest is dark brown with red and silver mixed in. In the summer, I’ll have almost Jessica rabbit cherry colored hair. We’re calicos!

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mittenkrusty@reddit

I have dark brown hair, up until my mid 20's I used to get a red tint in summer and my side burns went ginger.

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mrwynd@reddit

Lots of hair colors change over time. I was blonde as a child and slowly went to dirty blonde and eventually dark brown. My youngest child is 4 and currently blonde, we'll see if he has the same transition.

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ApprehensiveAd9993@reddit

Mine is slowly growing gray.

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Kai_Daigoji@reddit

I was very red as a child, and as I've gotten older it's softened and gotten browner and browser. I'm kind of sad it isn't all that red anymore...

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Friendship_Fries@reddit

The top is Cheryl McFadden.

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PepsiPerfect@reddit

Oh, so her hair in season 7 was actually hers and not a wig? Because her hair looked phenomenal that season.

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Eponym@reddit

Just a conspiracy - she was a Jean-Luc the whole time...

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dirtiestape@reddit

Bottom right is giving me real Kurgan vibes from highlander lol. Better to burn out than fade away.

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Worldly-Ad-9303@reddit

Yeah. But there Can Be Only One!

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fellbound@reddit

So, a Luc-alike.

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MAValphaWasTaken@reddit

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Piano_mike_2063@reddit

That’s so wrong !

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friartech@reddit

And I would’ve gotten away with it too if it weren’t for you meddlin kids !

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Bjornclaw11@reddit

Right? It's always the meddling kids that ruin the plans! But honestly, the way they wrote that character was so clever, it kept us guessing.

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pinchhitter4number1@reddit

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BadgerMk1@reddit

Duh.

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PapaTua@reddit

You are the Kirk Unit. You will assist me.

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Worldly-Ad-9303@reddit

Bald women are beautiful!

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BagOfLazers@reddit

She’s totally going to win Bake-Off this season

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No-Scheme-5370@reddit

Picard unit

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ElfBowler@reddit

Her oath of celibacy is on record!

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Worldly-Ad-9303@reddit

Must have been a big disappointment for her husband's!

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WhoMe28332@reddit

I can't hear it in anything other than her voice.

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TDS_isnt_real@reddit

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cd151@reddit

Or invited trans species:

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dnkroz3d@reddit

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JimmyHaggis@reddit

That looks like the other TNG doctor.

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MEM0RYCARD99@reddit

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Mayoo614@reddit

Shinzon has entered the chat

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Worldly-Ad-9303@reddit

I was totally in love with her, wig or no wig, and she still looks fantastic today at 76.

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rad2themax@reddit

Ok Broccoli

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Worldly-Ad-9303@reddit

Tbh I was thinking more along the lines of headaches, backaches, stomachaches etc not devolving into some kind of arachnid!

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Hot-Remote-4948@reddit

Those symptoms only get you Ogawa sorry

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Worldly-Ad-9303@reddit

Hey. I'm not complaining, she was quite the hottie herself!

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Pure_Ad_9292@reddit

This is her as a choreographer behind the scenes in Labyrinth (1986) with natural hair and colour

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xmarksthebluedress@reddit

😱 she was working on the labyrinth?? now i love her even more!!

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magic_vs_science@reddit

When I met her at a con a few years ago, I told her how much I loved her work on Labyrinth and she seemed really touched that I brought it up since it was obviously a Star Trek event we were at.

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xmarksthebluedress@reddit

so sweet ❤️

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darklordofpuppets@reddit

Wow, I'm glad to know she's a real redhead. Always suspected she might be dyeing it to be honest.

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Acrobatic-Shirt8540@reddit

Wait, what?

I knew she wore a wig in season one, but the rest?

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GiskardReventlov42@reddit

She was always my favorite when I was a kid because she had red hair. I hated being a redhead as a kid. And now, I cant imagine being anything else. It kinda becomes part of your identity. Every redhead I know personally is very proud of it, and so am I, and I dont really know why. I had nothing to do with it lol. Tell someone with dark red hair that they're a brunette, or someone with very strawberry blonde hair that they're a blonde, and you'll usually get an eye roll or a very stern "Im a red head." I dont know if this is true with other hair colors or not. Even when I meet a fellow redhead there's a feeling of...idk...sharedness? A kind of... "You got called pippy longstockings/howdy doody/carrot top too, didnt you?" MC1R👩🏻‍🦰

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GeneriComplaint@reddit

Honestly I am not a hair person. I cant tell a wig from real hair.

Ive been told they used wigs on trek alot, for instance Kes on voyager

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weaponizedtoddlers@reddit

Marina Sirtis was in wigs and shapewear for most of the show until iirc she got into Starfleet uniform. She wasn't too thrilled about it during an interview I've seen.

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AlegnaKoala@reddit

Just started watching “Voyager” for the first time, and Kes’ wigs are hilariously awful. Just so unflattering. The color was off and the texture looked cheap.

And of course there’s the Janeway hairdos — all wigs too. Although those were much nicer wigs that were much more flattering. (Can’t say her “little house on the prairie” style was flattering.)

My guess is that they use wigs to lessen the time that the actor is in makeup/hair on shoot days. If you can wash and style the wig and then just pop it on when they’re done with makeup, it probably saves time for everyone. Also if the actor has thin hair or if it’s light-colored and their scalp shows through under all the lights, they would use wigs/hairpieces to eliminate that.

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ButterscotchPast4812@reddit

They actually blew tons of money on the pilot because they filmed about a weeks worth of footage with Mulgrew with her real hair and some executives decided they didn't like it. So thats how Janeway ended up with a bun.

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BagOfLazers@reddit

It was a bizarre decision too. Her real hair looked great from the pics I remember seeing.

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ButterscotchPast4812@reddit

They were so particular because she was the first woman fronting a trek series so everything had to be perfect and it's wild to think that they were so focused on her hair (of all things). I agree with you. I'm glad they finally let her have her real hair in seasons 4-7.

It's even more bizarre to think they had already blew millions of dollars already at that point. Cause Mulgrew wasn't even the original Janeway. Once Bujold quit they had to go back to casting to find a new Janeway. They just threw so much money away on this pilot.

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AlegnaKoala@reddit

Ikr? I was just reading all about that last week.

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rpb192@reddit

I believe when Kate had it styled back in a bun the bun was a hairpiece and the front was her real hair, the hairline is very good if that is a wig

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Prestigious_Equal412@reddit

I’ve always imagined it must be absolute hell to maintain hair continuity for long projects that are portraying a story where the time between episodes in universe is less than the real world time the filming. I suppose you can avoid some of the “I have to cut my hair every week to keep it the same length because I’m still shooting the same weeklong chain of events I was a few months ago” issue with wigs, but facial hair must suck. Short of clean shaven, I can’t reliably trim my facial hair exactly the same way for the life of me. The “this rugged action hero hasn’t had time to shave over these last intense few days” scruff just boggles my mind to maintain.

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aflyingsquanch@reddit

With a good wig, it can be very difficult to tell. Sometimes the hairline is the best indicator as wigs, even very good ones, tend to have a certain look.

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YesterdayAlone2553@reddit

I was fooled for decades by Nathan Fillion. All actors are to be presumed wigged until told otherwise.

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Sturville@reddit

No, it's easy to tell every ~~toupee~~ wig I've ever seen looks like crap. /s

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Lawnmover_Man@reddit

Wow. Even with the sarcasm tag, way too many people don't get it.

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timzin@reddit

Basically everyone on Voyager wore a wig, even Top Paris

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ButterscotchPast4812@reddit

Janeway (until season 4), Kes and B'Elanna all wore wigs/pieces.

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TargetApprehensive38@reddit

The Chekov wigs were particularly noticeable, but he only used them for a few episodes while Walter grew out his hair.

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SignificantPop4188@reddit

His combover that is. Apparently, he was already going bald.

TOS had some really had wigs.

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rpb192@reddit

Shatners were great, toupees in the 60s were impressive

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No-Bid-9741@reddit

I’m with you, had no idea the ladies weren’t showing their natural hair. But then, I was a 12 year old boy and oblivious. Now im 45 and oblivious.

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Retinoid634@reddit

I saw her in person in a restaurant a while back. Her hair was copper red like the bottom right, shoulder length, thick and straight with bangs. She wore minimal makeup and her fair skin was actually very freckled, a true redhead.

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MonsterkillWow@reddit

She still has great hair.

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tycoon282@reddit

gif

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BadgerMk1@reddit

Duh.

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the_blonde_lawyer@reddit

why, though? her hair is so close to the wig, so why bother?

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EmptyBodybuilder7376@reddit

Wasn't Gates actually a Blonde?

(now grey)

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Akersis@reddit

With all of the anecdotes I read on reddit about reusing uniforms, wigs, etc... really leads me to believe a lot of corners were cut in production.

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rad2themax@reddit

It was television... they didn't have the same budget for every episode and the budgets they had were rarely large. To make anything work on the schedule and budgets they were on doing 80s/90s network television, they had to cut so many corners they turned into circles. Nature of the game.

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Prestigious_Equal412@reddit

Also I think it’s really easy to forget nowadays what a hard sell it was to get funding for sci-fi in particular. It was historically seen as sort of a niche market, but you started to see pushes from shows like TNG/DS9/Voyager, stargate, etc start to push things into a more mainstream direction, arguably reaching critical mass and becoming an acceptable genre for appealing to mainstream audiences with the success of Battlestar Galactica, which had an absolutely ridiculous amount of attention to detail in set design and continuity that would have been out of reach for almost all sci fi shows before it.

TNG was one of the first of a wave of shows that crawled on bloody knees so that modern sci fi could eventually take flight in mainstrain culture. At least in terms of perceived marketing viability, and thus funding. Of course Star Trek and Star Wars impacted mainstream culture before that, but being too interested made you a nerd. The 90s and early 00’s were when it started to be acceptable to be a fan of a sci fi show without being seen as a nerd

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Beneficial-Badger-61@reddit

Long hair ftw

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Greedybogle@reddit

I have just four questions for Ms. McFadden:

Do you wear wigs?

Have you worn wigs?

Will you wear wigs?

When will you wear wigs?

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StarTrekTNG "Qpid" post : The Robin Hood scenes in the episode are one of the few moments that Gates McFadden is seen with her natural hair and not a wig between season 1's "The Neutral Zone" and season 6's "True Q"