Beauty, brains and a fantastic sense of humor. Julia Charlene
Newmeyer (Chalane was her mother's maiden name) was born on August
16, 1933, in Los Angeles. Her father was a one-time Chicago Bears
football player, her mother was a star of the Follies of 1920. From
an early age, Julie studied piano, dance and classical ballet. She
graduated from high school at the age of 15, and spent a year
touring Europe with her mother and brother. Julie became prima
ballerina for the Los Angeles Opera. She attended UCLA studying
classical piano, philosophy and French. Julie went to New York and
tried out for Broadway musicals; in 1955 Julie made her Broadway
debut as the ballerina in "Silk Stockings." Julie won acclaim for
her role as Stupefyin' Jones in "Li'l Abner." Though audiences and
critics alike where stupefied by her good looks, that is not the
compliment Julie wanted. Julie wanted to be known for her comedy,
as she told the New York Times: "Tell me I'm funny, and it's the
greatest compliment in the world." Promoting her various Broadway
and off-Broadway show appearances, Julie often posed as a pinup
girl. Making the transition to TV, Julie appeared in Rod Serling's
science fiction series the "Twilight Zone" in 1963, playing Miss
Devlin (devil). As physical perfection, Julie was perfect to play
Rhoda the Robot in "My Living Doll, " the sitcom had an
enthusiastic cult following. In 1966, urged on by her friends, she
would try out for and be cast as Catwoman (a character she had
never heard of) in the wildly popular TV series "Batman." Due to a
movie commitment, Julie was unavailable to play TV's Catwoman in
the 3rd season (her part was taken by Eartha Kitt). Julie was very
busy in the 1960s and 1970s, making guest appearances in many TV
shows and several TV-movies. Because of her love of the stage and
live performances, Julie toured the country in stage productions of
"Damn Yankees" and "Dames at Sea" and others. Becoming an
entrepreneur, in 1977 Julie turned up in People Magazine wearing
her new invention "Nudemar" pantyhose (due to an elastic back seam
it provided fanny support). In the 1980s, Julie appeared in 9 films
while she was busy raising her son and working in the real estate
business. Julie went back to UCLA to take a few real estate
courses. In 1991 Julie toured in a stage production of "The Women."
Still very active, and very beautiful, Julie will appear at fan
conventions occasionally.
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