“To Wong Foo” icon Julie Newmar makes rare appearance at 92
- - “To Wong Foo” icon Julie Newmar makes rare appearance at 92
Ryan ColemanJanuary 13, 2026 at 4:38 AM
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Julie Newmar as Catwoman in the 1960s 'Batman' TV series
Live from Burbank, Calif., it's Julie Newmar!
The '60s Batman TV series and To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar icon made a rare appearance over the weekend at The Hollywood Show, a sprawling pop culture fan convention held three times a year in the Burbank neighborhood of Los Angeles.
Newmar was a prolific presence on screen and stage during her heyday of the 1950s into the 1960s. But her last roles date to a pair of direct-to-video Batman cartoons released in 2016 and 2017, and the last time she appeared in the flesh was 2012, when she spoke about the pin-up legend Bettie Page in the documentary Bettie Page Reveals All.
Since that time, the 92-year-old star has kept her public appearances quite limited. But she turned up again for the devoted fans at The Hollywood Show.
The Hollywood Show
Julie Newmar appears at The Hollywood Show fan convention
David Elkouby, who organizes The Hollywood Show alongside his wife, Esther Elkouby, tells EW that Newmar plans for this appearance to be her last. Following her participation in the event, which reunited several of the stars of the famed 1966 Batman live-action series, Newmar won't attend any other fan conventions or expos.
"She's amazing," Elkouby says. "She didn't stop from the beginning until the very last person. She didn't get up from her chair. It's really a testament to her. She was there for the fans, and this was it."
Newmar was joined by several of her Batman costars at the winter edition of The Hollywood Show to greet fans, sign autographs, and pose for photos, including Eileen O'Neill, who played the villainous henchwoman Millie Second; Nancy Kovack, who recurred as Queenie, one of the Joker's acolytes; and Dynasty star Joan Collins, who attempted to take down the Caped Crusader as the sinister Siren.
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Of the bunch, Newmar had the largest role on the series, earning her place in entertainment history as the first actress to embody Catwoman in live action. Newmar would play Batman's flirtatious, on-again-off-again adversary for two seasons, being replaced by Eartha Kitt for season 3.
Tibrina Hobson/Getty
Julie Newmar at a fan convention in 2017
Beyond Catwoman, Newmar earned a reputation as a stage sensation, earning a Tony in 1958 Leslie Stevens play The Marriage-Go-Round. Newmar would reprise her award-winning role of Katrin Sveg for the 1961 film adaptation co-starring James Mason and Susan Hayward, which earned her a Golden Globe nomination.
Over the course of her seven-decade career, Newmar also appeared in films like Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and The Rookie, and in series like Columbo, Melrose Place, and Bewitched. She was immortalized in the 1995 queer classic To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar, which sees drag queens played by Patrick Swayze, Wesley Snipes, and John Leguizamo set off on a road trip for Los Angeles, inspired by an autographed photo of Newmar, who appears in a cameo role.
on Entertainment Weekly
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
