Tricia O'Neil

Tricia ONeil born Patricia Lou ONeil March 11 1945 is an American actress from Shreveport Louisiana She is known for her diverse roles in film and television spanning decades ONeil made her film debut in 1972 in The Legend of Nigger Charley and appeared in films such as The Gumball Rally 1976 Piranha II The Spawning 1982 and Titanic 1997 She has made numerous guest appearances on TV shows like Columbo Murder She Wrote Star Trek The Next Generation where she notably played Captain Rachel Garrettthe first female captain of the USS Enterprise Star Trek Deep Space Nine Babylon 5 and many others ONeil began her performing career as a jazz blues and folk singer before transitioning to acting She studied at Baylor University and made her professional theatrical debut on Broadway in the musical Two by Two Her acting career is distinguished by versatility including roles in science fiction and drama She retired from screen acting in 2001