Julie Newmar rejected pressure to institutionalize son with Down syndrome

Overcoming Hollywood Casting Hurdles and Claiming the Tony

Before her television fame, Newmar struggled to find standard roles because of her imposing height and classical training. “I think it was difficult to cast me because of my… differences. I’m not ordinary enough,” Newmar told The Guardian in a June 2026 interview, recounting how she once danced a single pirouette with Fred Astaire while wearing a long skirt with bent knees because he measured roughly 162 centimeters. Daughter of an engineer and football coach father and a fashion designer mother, Newmar transitioned from ballet and piano to Broadway. She won a Tony Award in 1959 for her role in the comedy The Marriage-Go-Round, a part she reprised in the 1961 film adaptation where she played an independent young Swedish woman seeking to have a child with an American academic.

The Catwoman Phenomenon and Batman Pop Culture Legacy

Global stardom arrived when Newmar stepped into the form-fitting costume of Catwoman on the 1965–1968 television series Batman, starring opposite Adam West. Her character walked a constant line between criminal plotting and flirtatious banter with West’s Batman until Robin’s introduction altered the dynamic. While fans and media outlets speculated about a real-life romance, Newmar dismissed the rumors with a laugh in her Guardian interview, stating, “I didn’t have any la-di-da with Adam West. People would like to think so.” She credited the series’ success primarily to the writing, describing her contribution modestly: “I was just a stuffed toy.” Following her television run, Newmar married Texas lawyer J. Holt Smith at age 44, though the union dissolved as her desire for family life clashed with his focus on her celebrity profile.

Welcoming Son John and Defying Medical Advice

The birth of her son John in August 1981 triggered an immediate shift in Newmar’s priorities, coinciding with the end of her marriage to Smith. Medical professionals at the time advised parents of infants with Down syndrome to place them in specialized residential facilities, warning Newmar that the care demands would prove destructive. Newmar refused. “They tried to make me believe I couldn’t handle it. But I knew he was my son and that he belonged with me,” Newmar stated. Shortly after birth, John survived a severe case of bacterial meningitidis that left him permanently deaf, prompting Newmar to learn sign language. “When your son can’t hear and has trouble with speech, you learn to listen with your eyes and heart,” she explained to reporters.

Artistic Collaboration and Aging with Down Syndrome

Because John processed the world visually, Newmar built a home art studio and invested in his creative work, regularly exhibiting his paintings and drawings. As Newmar entered her eighties and nineties while managing a neurological condition that affected her mobility, John remained her primary anchor. “People ask me where I get the strength. But John is my source of strength. Aging with him is a blessing, not a burden,” Newmar told The Guardian. By bringing John to public events and discussing their daily lives openly, Newmar challenged social isolation and helped demystify Down syndrome for other families, declaring that the unconditional love offered by her son represents a model for the world.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who played Catwoman in the 1960s Batman television series?

Julie Newmar originated the role of Catwoman in the ABC television series Batman, appearing from 1965 to 1968.

When was Julie Newmar’s son born?

Julie Newmar gave birth to her only child, John Jewell Nuccio, in August 1981 at the age of 48.

How did Julie Newmar approach her son’s Down syndrome diagnosis?

Newmar rejected medical recommendations to place her son in a specialized facility, choosing instead to raise him directly and later learning sign language after he lost his hearing to bacterial meningitidis.