in
Maverick (1960)
Film After moving to Hollywood, Adams worked as a part-time secretary and spent time taking speech lessons to lose her accent. Working under her real name, Betty Adams, she landed a role in
Red, Hot and Blue (1949). Then, she landed a leading role in the
Lippert Western
The Dalton Gang (1949).
B-movie stardom followed quickly when the producers of
The Dalton Gang asked if she would star in their next six
Westerns. Adams's breakout role as a third-billed part in Universal Pictures'
Bright Victory (1951), the audience response was enough that Universal put Adams under contract. Universal didn't like the name "Betty", so they changed her name to "Julia". She eventually changed it herself to "Julie". "The studio picked Julia, but I never have felt comfortable with it. I just like the name Julie better, and the studio has given me permission to make the change." While under contract with Universal, she co-starred in films opposite some of Hollywood's top leading men, including with
James Stewart in
Bend of the River (1952), with
Rock Hudson in
The Lawless Breed (1953) and
One Desire (1955), with
Tyrone Power in
The Mississippi Gambler (1953), with
Glenn Ford in
The Man from the Alamo (1953). She was featured as the beautiful ichthyologist Kay Lawrence in the horror film
Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954). The white one-piece swimsuit worn by Adams in the film was made exclusively for her. The studio, for publicity purposes, had Adams's legs insured by Lloyd's of London for $125,000. Although two sequels to
Creature were made, Adams did not want to appear in them. Ultimately, Adams is best remembered for her role in
Creature. Adams with
Rory Calhoun in the film
The Looters (1955), the story of a plane crash in the
Rocky Mountains. Part of the picture was filmed about
Tarryall Creek at what is now
Eleven Mile State Park in
Park County in central
Colorado. The advertising poster reads: "Five desperate men ... and a girl who didn't care ... trapped on a mountain of gale-lashed rock!" Adams starred with
Charlton Heston in
The Private War of Major Benson (1955) and with
Dan Duryea in
Slaughter on Tenth Avenue (1957). She also starred in 1957's
Four Girls in Town, a romantic comedy about four young women competing for the leading role in a new movie, featuring an international cast. In 1957, Adams's run at Universal came to an end with
Slim Carter. After that, she did have a few more film appearances, but most of her work would be in television. Adams's post-Universal films included
The Gunfight at Dodge City (1959) with
Joel McCrea. She appeared with
Elvis Presley in the musical-comedy
Tickle Me (1965). Adams thought highly of her co-star, noting: "He was such a gentleman, and surprisingly shy... I was quite in awe of him because he would do a musical number in one take, and that was wonderful".
Television on
The Andy Griffith Show (1962) On television, Adams appeared on
The Andy Griffith Show portraying Mary Simpson, a county nurse and romantic interest of Sheriff
Andy Taylor in a 1962 episode. She also made four guest appearances on
Perry Mason, including the 1963 episode, "The Case of the Deadly Verdict", in which she played Janice Barton, Mason's only convicted client during the show's nine-year run on
CBS. In 1963, she starred in "The Case Of Lovers Leap". In 1964, she played Janice Blake in "The Case of the Missing Button". In 1965, she played the role of defendant Pat Kean in "The Case of the Fatal Fortune". Adams appeared on
The Rifleman as a dubious vixen and romantic interest of lead character
Chuck Connors. She guest-starred in five episodes of
77 Sunset Strip, three of
Alfred Hitchcock Presents, and two of
Maverick,
"The White Widow" and "The Brasada Spur", both with
Jack Kelly as Bart Maverick. She also guest starred in an episode of "Mannix" in 1967 called "Then the Drink Takes the Man." More guest-star roles in popular television series followed, including
One Step Beyond;
The Big Valley, in its classic episode "The Emperor of Rice'";
McMillan & Wife;
Police Woman;
The Streets of San Francisco;
The Incredible Hulk;
Cannon;
Quincy, M.E.;
Too Close for Comfort; and
Cagney & Lacey. Adams co-starred with
James Stewart in all 24 episodes of
The Jimmy Stewart Show on
NBC in 1971–1972. Stewart played a professor, and Adams played his wife. She was cast in the recurring role of
real estate agent Eve Simpson for ten episodes of CBS's
Murder, She Wrote.
Appearances Adams originally had no interest in monster movie conventions. However, in 2003,
Ben Chapman convinced her to join him for a 50th anniversary celebration of
Creature from the Black Lagoon at Creaturefest in 2002. The festival was held at
Wakulla Springs, just south of
Tallahassee, Florida, where underwater scenes were filmed in 1953. In October 2012, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences selected
Creature from the Black Lagoon as one of 13 classic horror films to screen to honor the 100th anniversary of Universal Pictures. The film was shown (in 3D format) on October 16 at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in
Beverly Hills, California. ==Personal life and death==