Julie McCullough
Julie McCullough | |
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Born | Honolulu, Hawaii,United States | January 30, 1965
Years active | 1983–present |
Known for | Growing Pains |
Playboycenterfold appearance | |
February 1986 | |
Preceded by | Sherry Arnett |
Succeeded by | Kim Morris |
Personal details | |
Height | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) |
Julie Michelle McCullough(born January 30, 1965) is an American model, actress andstand-up comedian.She wasPlayboymagazine'sPlaymate of the Monthfor February 1986, and played the role of Julie Costello onGrowing Painsin 1989–90.
Early life
[edit]Julie McCullough, who is of Irish descent, was born inHonolulu, Hawaiiand named after a 1950s song called "Oh Julie". She has one older brother, Joey. McCullough's parents divorced when she was four. Her mother, Nancy, a housewife, married Herman Paynter, a Marine, one year later.[1]In addition to living in Honolulu, she grew up in several states, includingNorth Carolina,West Virginia,Florida,Louisiana,Missouri,Texas,NevadaandCalifornia,as well as Canada and Italy.[2]She considers herself Southern, having attended high school inPoplar Bluff, MissouriandAllen, Texas.[3]
Career
[edit]Modeling
[edit]McCullough worked as a model in her teens before moving to California. In 1983, McCullough graduated from high school and was living in Allen, Texas, when a photographer approached her to pose forPlayboymagazine.[1]She became a Playboy model appearing in four issues: February 1985 (on the cover and as part of a "Girls of Texas" pictorial), February 1986 (as Playmate of the Month), September 1986 (on the cover and as part of a "Farmer's Daughters" pictorial) and October 1989 (a post-Growing Painscompilation of her first three shoots with extra pictures).[1]She also appeared on the cover of "Inside Sports" magazine's swimsuit issue and made posters forHarley-Davidson.
In 1989, officials ofNorth Carolina Azalea Festivalstripped Julie McCullough of her crown as Azalea Queen of Wilmington, because of controversy surrounding her appearance as aPlayboycenterfold.[1]
In 2004, McCullough voiced herself as a tutorial guide in the video gamePlayboy: The Mansion.
Acting career
[edit]McCullough found work in a number of television and film projects. Her work includedMax Headroom,The Golden Girls,a role in the 1987 filmBig Bad Mama IIco-starringAngie Dickinson,Superboyand the 1988horror movieremakeThe Blob.She starred in the syndicated adventure seriesRobin's Hoodsas Stacey Wright with singer-actorRick Springfield.Robin's Hoodslasted one season on television.
Growing Pains
[edit]Julie McCullough landed the role of nanny Julie Costello on the television showGrowing Painsin 1989. She appeared in eight episodes until she was fired in 1990, which allegedly stemmed from series starKirk Cameron's conversion toevangelicalChristianity,a conversion that, according toThe E! True Hollywood Storyepisode focusing on the show, served to alienate him from his fellow cast members, as he did not invite any of them to his wedding. In his 2008 autobiographyStill Growing,Cameron states that he did not call for her to be fired and the show's producers have claimed that Julie's character was never intended to be a permanent character. However, the long-told story is that Cameron called for McCullough's termination because of his anger and objections to her having posed nude inPlayboy,accusing the show's producers of promoting pornography. A decade later, Cameron apologized to his TV family for some of his prior behavior due to his lack of maturity.[2][4]He reportedly did not reconcile with McCullough, who claims that Cameron refused to speak to her during a later encounter. She remains critical of him, stating that she lost a lot from the public criticism she endured during the controversy. McCullough has criticized the evangelical television programming Cameron has produced, which she has viewed on one occasion, saying on her MySpace page:
He thinks if I read science books that I'm going to hell. [I would] rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints... the sinners are much more fun. And a lot more interesting than some book-burner who is still having growing pains. I am at peace with God. Kirk thinks people like me are going to Hell, if I do then at least I'll go well informed and well read.[5]
After theGrowing Painsscandal, McCullough made several television appearances onBeverly Hills, 90210,Jake and the Fatman,Harry and the Hendersons,The Golden GirlsandDrexell's Class.
Comedy
[edit]McCullough now works as a stand-up comedian, and has performed at theHollywood Improv,thePalms Hotel and Casino,and theLaugh Factory.[citation needed]
McCullough has appeared on theE!reality showThe Girls Next Door.She appeared in "Under the Covers", the ninth episode of the first season, which aired in October 2005, "We Can Work It Out", the thirteenth episode of the second season, which aired in November 2006 and "May the Horse Be With You", the second episode of the third season, which aired in March 2007.
Personal life
[edit]According to Dave Itzkoff, writing in an article in the June 2006Playboymagazine, during the rise in popularity ofMySpace,McCullough was "Playboy's unofficial ambassador to the MySpace nation. "[6]
In 2015, McCullough celebrated her 50th birthday at theComedy Storeclub in Hollywood with a sold-outstand-up comedyshow. Guests includedTia CarrereandPauly Shore.[7]
Music video
[edit]Nitro, "Long Way From Home" 1989
Filmography
[edit]Film
[edit]Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1987 | Big Bad Mama II | Polly McClatchie | |
1988 | The Blob | Susie | |
1992 | Round Trip to Heaven | Lucille Johnson | |
1993 | The Baby Doll Murders | Betty Maglia | |
1994 | The St. Tammany Miracle | Kimberly | |
In the Living Years | Annie | ||
1996 | Echo of Blue | Kathleen Randolph | |
1997 | Top of the World | Ginger | |
1999 | Me and Will | Stacey | |
2000 | Intrepid | Cruise Director Shannon | |
2004 | West from North Goes South | Dream Girl | |
2008 | Jack Rio | Red Carpet Hostess | |
2009 | A Letter to Dad | Annie | |
2011 | 2012: Ice Age | Teri Hart | Direct to video |
2016 | Renaissance Man | Jules | |
Hospital Arrest | Dr. Lynn Joyner | ||
2018 | Untogether | Bus stop crackhead |
Television
[edit]Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1987 | Who's the Boss? | Beautiful Girl | Episode: "The Way We Was" |
1st & Ten: The Championship | Tracy - Stuart's girlfriend | Episode: "The Brink of Death" | |
1988 | Max Headroom | Episode: "Neurostim" | |
Superboy | Sara Danner | Episode: "A kind of Princess" | |
1989–1990 | Growing Pains | Julie Costello | 11 episodes |
1990 | The Golden Girls | Mary | Episode: "Mary Has a Little Lamb" |
Without Her Consent | Claire Sugarman | TV movie | |
1991 | Beverly Hills, 90210 | Trina | Episode: "Slumber Party" |
The Munsters Today | Stephanie | Episode: "Lotsa Luck" | |
Jake and the Fatman | Darcy Warren | Episode: "It's a Sin to Tell a Lie" | |
Revenge of the Nerds | Cheerleader | Unaired TV Pilot | |
1991–1992 | Drexell's Class | Rosie / School Secretary | 3 episodes |
1992 | Harry and the Hendersons | Uma | Episode: "The Love Mask" |
1993 | Arly Hanks | Jay-Lee | TV movie |
1993–1994 | Robin's Hoods | Stacey Wright | Main role |
1995 | The Drew Carey Show | Peaches | 2 episodes |
1996–1997 | High Tide | Meg Kelsey | |
1997 | Breast Men | 1970's Head Receptionist | TV movie |
1999 | Pacific Blue | Carol Best | 2 episodes |
2000 | Relic Hunter | Erica, The Erotic | Episode: "A Vanishing Art" |
2001 | Black Scorpion | Dr. Ariel Haze / Pollutia | Episode: "Life's a Gas" |
2012 | Gila! | Vera | TV movie |
2013 | Sharknado | Joni Waves |
References
[edit]- ^abcd"Growing Pains's Julie McCullough Tries to Bury Her Bare-All Past"PeopleOctober 30, 1989
- ^abMcCullough interview onThe John Kerwin Show;YouTube;Accessed August 21, 2010
- ^McCullough's MySpace page
- ^Julie McCulloughArchived2008-10-12 at theWayback MachineatTV;Accessed August 21, 2010
- ^"Julie McCullough".MySpace.Archived fromthe originalon 7 July 2012.Retrieved15 April2022.
- ^Itzkoff, Dave(June 2006).Playboy;pp. 61, 62, 130-133
- ^"Playmate News".Playboy.62(3): 137. April 2015.
External links
[edit]- 1965 births
- Actresses from Honolulu
- American film actresses
- American women comedians
- American stage actresses
- American television actresses
- American people of Irish descent
- Living people
- 1980s Playboy Playmates
- 20th-century American actresses
- 21st-century American comedians
- People from Allen, Texas
- 21st-century American actresses
- Comedians from Hawaii
- Comedians from North Carolina
- Comedians from West Virginia
- Comedians from Florida
- Comedians from Louisiana
- Comedians from Missouri
- Comedians from Texas
- Comedians from Nevada
- Comedians from California