Caroline Kava (born 25 September 1949; age 75) is the actress who played Toby Russell in the Star Trek: The Next Generation fifth season episode "Ethics". She filmed her scenes for this episode between Thursday 12 December 1991 and Friday 13 December 1991 and Tuesday 17 December 1991 and Friday 20 December 1991 on Paramount Stage 8, 9, and 16. Two of her three costumes from this episode were sold off on the It's A Wrap! sale and auction on eBay. [1](X) [2](X)
Kava made her television debut in 1976 on CBS' Ivan the Terrible, as did Star Trek: Deep Space Nine actress Nana Visitor. In 1990, Kava appeared in Quantum Leap, starring Star Trek: Enterprise star Scott Bakula and Dean Stockwell. In addition, she has appeared on Max Headroom (starring fellow Next Generation guest performer Matt Frewer in the title role, and also featuring Andreas Katsulas, Charles Rocket, and Concetta Tomei), The Equalizer (one episode with William Sadler, another with David Andrews and Robert Joy, both starring Keith Szarabajka), L.A. Law (starring Corbin Bernsen and Larry Drake, in an episode with Ethan Phillips), The X-Files, Law & Order (two episodes, including one with Kevin Conway and Tim Ransom), and Law & Order: Trial by Jury (with Bebe Neuwirth and Allan Miller). She also had recurring roles on Dawson's Creek and The Practice. On the latter series, she worked with the likes of Robert Curtis Brown, Bill Cobbs, Gregory Itzin, Richard McGonagle, Leon Russom, and George D. Wallace.
Her earliest feature film credits are Heaven's Gate (1980, co-starring Brad Dourif and Terry O'Quinn) and Year of the Dragon (1985, with Jack Kehler). She played the mother of Tom Cruise's character in Born on the Fourth of July (1989, featuring Reg E. Cathey, Bob Gunton, Ed Lauter, Mark Moses, Richard Poe, and Mike Starr). Her other films include Little Nikita (1988, with Richard Lynch) and Snow Falling on Cedars (1999, with James Cromwell and Cary-Hiroyuki). Her made-for-TV movies include Cross of Fire (1989, with Dakin Matthews, Richard Riehle, Stephen Root, William Schallert, and Keith Szarabajka), 1990's Murder in Black and White (with Tom Wright) and Murder Times Seven (with Andreas Katsulas), 1991's Guilty Until Proven Innocent (co-starring Mark Metcalf) and In a Child's Name (co-starring Jeff Allin, James Cromwell, Louise Fletcher and David Huddleston), and 1996's Shattered Mind (with Brett Cullen and Richard Herd).
More recently she wrote and directed the short drama Jesus, Maria (2010) and appeared as Aunt Eller in the television musical Oklahoma! (2011).