What Is Julie Newmar's Net Worth?
Julie Newmar is an American actress, singer, and dancer who has a net worth of $50 million. Julie Newmar is best known for being the first woman to portray Catwoman and for playing Katrin Sveg in both the film and stage versions of "Marriage-Go-Round," both of which garnered her awards. Her height and hourglass figure gave Newmar a presence in Hollywood, which was difficult to ignore. Her original Catwoman costume is now housed at the Smithsonian Institution.
Entrepreneurship
Julie Newmar has been granted two U.S. patents for pantyhose designs and one for a bra design. The bra, which was promoted as being nearly invisible, was called the Nudemar. Outside of lingerie patents, Julie is an extremely successful real estate investor with valuable holdings in the La Brea/Fairfax area. She has been directly responsible for the redevelopment and revitalization of the area. Her father began buying property in the area in the 1940s, and Julie took over and expanded upon his death.
Early Years
Julie Chalene Newmeyer was born on August 16, 1933, in Los Angeles, California. She is the oldest of the three children born to Helene (Jesmer) and Don Newmeyer. Her father had once been a professional football player with the Los Angeles Buccaneers and was in charge of the physical education department at Los Angeles City College. Her mother was a fashion designer.
Film & Dance
Having trained in ballet from a young age, Newmar performed with the Los Angeles Opera in 1945. She went on to act and dance in small and uncredited roles in films such as "She's Working Her Way Through College" with Ronald Reagan and "Just For You" with Bing Crosby in 1952. She appeared in seven films in 1953, including "The I Don't Care Girl" starring Mitzi Gaynor, "The Farmer Takes a Wife" starring Betty Grable, "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" starring Marilyn Monroe, and "The Band Wagon" starring Fred Astaire.
Newmar's first major film role came in 1954 when she was cast as Dorcas, one of the brides in the American musical film "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers." In 1961, she portrayed Katrin Sveg in the American comedy "The Marriage-Go-Round" based on the 1958 play of the same name by Leslie Stevens. For her role in the film, she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer.
Newmar had a lead role alongside Gregory Peck in the 1969 western film "Mackenna's Gold" and also took star billing in the 1971 American television movie "The Feminist and the Fuzz."
In 1985, Julie starred as Dr. Zarma in the American science fiction horror film "Evils of the Night." In 1989, after starring alongside Bo Derek and Anthony Quinn in the romantic fantasy comedy "Ghosts Can't Do It," she was nominated for a Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actress.
In 1995, Newmar played herself in the American road comedy "To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar." Starring Wesley Snipes, Patrick Swayze, and John Leguizamo as a trio of New York City drag queens who take a road trip, the film had a box office gross revenue of $47.8 million worldwide. Julie went on to appear as herself in several other films, including "Return to the Batcave: The Misadventures of Adam and Burt" in 2003, "Beautiful Darling: The Life and Times of Candy Darling, Andy Warhol Superstar" in 2010, "Betty Page Reveals All" and "The Mechanical Bride" in 2012, and "Broadway: Beyond the Golden Age" in 2013.
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Voice Work
Newmar voiced Martha Wayne in the 2010 animated television series "Batman: The Brave and the Bold."
She voiced Catwoman in the 2016 animated superhero film "Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders" and the animated direct-to-video superhero film "Batman vs. Two-Face" in 2017.
Television
Newmar's debut television appearance was as a character named Suzie in an episode of "The Phil Silvers Show" in 1957. In 1962, she appeared in two episodes of the American adventure crime drama series "Route 66." The following year, she played Miss Devlin in an episode of the horror anthology series "The Twilight Zone" titled "Of Late I Think of Cliffordville."
From 1964 to 1965, Julie starred as Rhoda Miller in the American science-fiction sitcom "My Living Doll" alongside Bob Cummings. For her work in this role, she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best TV Star – Female.
From 1966 to 1967, Newmar appeared in 13 episodes of the series "Batman" as Catwoman/Minerva Matthews. Other television shows she appeared in during the 1960s include "The Beverly Hillbillies," "Star Trek: The Original Series" and "Get Smart."
During the 1970s, she appeared in nearly a dozen television shows, including "Bewitched," "Columbo," "The Bionic Woman" and "Love Boat."
In 1980, she played Zarina in two episodes of "Buck Rogers in the 25th Century." Over the next decade, she also appeared in the crime drama series "CHiPS," the fantasy drama series "Fantasy Island" and the mystery series "Hart to Hart."
Newmar played herself in a 1985 episode of "Half Nelson," a 1995 episode of "Hope & Gloria," and a 1996 episode of "Melrose Place."
Stage
In 1940, Newmar performed in a stage production of "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland," based on the 1865 children's novel by Lewis Carroll. In 1955, she made her Broadway debut playing Vera in the musical "Silk Stockings." Later that decade, she performed in the theatrical revue "Ziegfeld Follies" and the musical "Li'l Abner" based on the comic strip. In 1958, she won a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for portraying Katrin Sveg in the stage production of "The Marriage-Go-Round."
Several stage performances during the 1960s included the musicals "Damn Yankees" and "Stop the World – I Want to Get Off." In 1982, Newmar was to perform in a stage production of "In the Boom Boom Room," which concerned a young go-go dancer involved in a difficult relationship with her parents but was fired during rehearsals and replaced by her understudy.
Video
Julie appeared in English singer George Michael's 1992 music video "Too Funky," along with fashion models Linda Evangelista, Tyra Banks, and Beverly Peele.
Personal Life
Julie was once engaged to Western novelist Louis Dearborn L'Amour, but the relationship didn't last. On August 5, 1977, she married attorney J. Holt Smith. They divorced in 1984 and have one child together, John Jewl Smith, who was born on February 5, 1981.
Comics
In 2012, Bluewater Comics published a four-issue series titled "The Secret Lives of Julie Newmar."
Advocate for Gay Rights
Having long been an outspoken public supporter of gay rights, Newmar was honored with a lifetime achievement award from the Gay and Lesbian Elder Housing organization in Los Angeles in 2013.
