The original security chief under Captain Jean-Luc Picard on the U.S.S. Enterprise led a tragic yet heroic life until her death in the line of duty in 2364.

Yar was born on the failing colony world of Turkana IV in 2337, but both her parents were killed in the crossfire among the planet's cadre infighting just after her younger sister Ishara was born some 4 1/2 years later. After their foster care family abandoned them within months, the girls led a violent and harrowing life on the streets, eluding rape gangs and drug addiction while fending for themselves. One comforting companion amid the chaos at the time was a kitten.

Yar finally got off the world in 2352, at age 15 - just about the time the colony broke all contact with the UFP. She invited Ishara to join her, but the younger sister refused, preferring the protection of her Coalition cadre there. The two never saw each other again, although Ishara learned of her sister's legacy from Enterprise officers in 2367.

Picard had asked for Yar aboard the Enterprise after he first saw her as she risked her life in a Carnelian mine field to save a colonist, and her current captain owed him a favor.

Despite a valiant effort by Dr. Crusher, on SD 41601 during a rescue mission on Vagra II she died as a result of injuries from an invisible energy bolt to her head by the malevolent creature Armus; it left a blotch on her jaw. A memorial service that featured a holographic recording of her last thoughts and thank-yous to her closest shipmates was held later.

Well-trained in martial arts and athletics, her favorite pastimes were aikido and Parrises squares, and she participated in ship-board competitions. Having grown up hardened to sentimentality, she found it a struggle to express her femininity - although the Tsiolkovsky virus allowed her to share an intimacy with Data once, an intimacy he treasured with a small hologram from her memorial tape, though he was forced to disclose the encounter during his trial for sentient rights a year later.

Not everyone born in Hollywood, California, has famous family connections. Denise Crosby's early and young adult life, however, were influenced by her status as Bing Crosby's grandchild and Blake Edwards's daughter-in-law.

There is no doubt Crosby has steadily forged her own niche in the entertainment industry, from her portrayal of Lisa Davis on Days of Our Lives to the no-nonsense Lieutenant Natasha 'Tasha' Yar on Star Trek: The Next Generation, where she also played her own daughter, Romulan Commander Sela - a role she would reprise on the "Star Trek Armada" video game.

Since her Star Trek days, Crosby has worked non-stop in television, notably as Dr. Gretchen Kelly on Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, as well as in high-budget features like "Deep Impact." Crosby has also starred in Stephen King's "Pet Sematary" and the Quentin Tarantino caper "Jackie Brown." One of her very first film appearances was in the Eddie Murphy vehicle "48 Hrs." Crosby has recently made time to star in and co-executive produce a feature documentary, "Trekkies" about the fans of Star Trek.

Biographies derived and edited from the Official Site.