Betty May Adams, was born Oct. 17, 1926 in Waterloo, Iowa, raised in Arkansas and made her acting debut in "Hansel and Gretel" when she was in the third grade. When she decided to become an actress at 19, she moved to California, working three days a week as a secretary in order to support herself and spent the other days taking speech lessons and making the rounds at the studios' casting departments.

In her first film, she played a starlet in Paramount's Red, Hot and Blue (1949), followed by a leading role in the Lippert Western The Dalton Gang (1949). Over a period of five weeks, she appeared in six more quickie Lippert Westerns. Adams' first big break was at Universal, when she appeared in a screen test opposite All-American football player Leon Hart, a Detroit Lions end. It was Hart who was being considered by the studio, but the gridiron star flopped while Universal execs flipped over Adams. She billed herself under her real name of Betty Adams until she was signed by Universal in 1949 when she became Julia Adams. Her first film as Julia was Hollywood Story in 1951. In 1955 she officially changed her name to Julie in the film Six Bridges to Cross. Even though Julie Adams was always in demand, her benchmark performance was as Kay Lawrence in The Creature From The Black Lagoon

Adams and her husband Ray Danton worked together a number of times in film and television.

1949 Red, Hot and Blue – Starlet (uncredited)

1949 The Dalton Gang – Polly Medford (as Betty Adams)

1950 Hostile Country – Ann Green (as Betty Adams)

1950 Marshal of Heldorado – Ann (as Betty Adams)

1950 Colorado Ranger – Ann (as Betty Adams)

1950 West of the Brazos – Ann Greene (as Betty Adams)

1950 Crooked River – Ann Hayden (as Betty Adams)

1950 Fast on the Draw – Ann (as Betty Adams)

1950 For Heaven’s Sake – Joe’s Mother (scenes deleted)

1951 Hollywood Story – Sally Rousseau / Amanda Rousseau (as Julia Adams)

1951 Bright Victory – Chris Paterson (as Julia Adams)

1952 Finders Keepers – Sue Kipps (as Julia Adams)

1952 Bend of the River – Laura Baile (as Julia Adams)

1952 The Treasure of Lost Canyon – Myra Wade (as Julia Adams)

1952 Horizons West – Lorna Hardin (as Julia Adams)

1953 The Lawless Breed – Rosie McCoy (as Julia Adams)

1953 The Mississippi Gambler – Ann Conant (as Julia Adams)

1953 The Man from the Alamo – Beth Anders (as Julia Adams)

1953 Wings of the Hawk – Raquel Noriega (as Julia Adams)

1953 The Stand at Apache River – Valerie Kendrick (as Julia Adams)

1954 Creature from the Black Lagoon – Kay Lawrence (as Julia Adams)

1954 Francis Joins the WACS – Capt. Jane Parker (as Julia Adams)

1955 Six Bridges to Cross – Ellen Gallagher

1955 The Looters – Sheryl Gregory

1955 The Private War of Major Benson – Dr. Kay Lambert

1955 One Desire – Judith Watrous

1956 Away All Boats – Nadine McDougall

1957 Four Girls in Town – Kathy Conway

1957 Slaughter on Tenth Avenue – Daisy ‘Dee’ Pauley

1957 Slim Carter – Clover Doyle

1958 Tarawa Beachhead – Ruth Nelson Campbell

1959 The Gunfight at Dodge City – Pauline Howard

1960 Raymie – Helen

1962 The Underwater City – Dr. Monica Powers

1965 Tickle Me – Vera Radford

1971 The Last Movie – Mrs. Anderson

1974 McQ – Elaine

1975 The Wild McCullochs – Hannah McCulloch

1975 Psychic Killer – Dr. Laura Scott

1976 The Killer Inside Me – Mother

1978 Goodbye, Franklin High – Janice Armer

1978 The Fifth Floor – Nurse Hannelord

1984 Champions – Emma Hussey

1988 Black Roses – Mrs. Miller

1990 Catchfire – Martha

2005 Lost (Short) – Older Woman

2006 World Trade Center – Allison’s Grandmother

2006 Lost (Short) – Actress

2011 Carnage – Secretary (Telephone Voice) (voice), Dialect Coach (Christoph Waltz)

1999 Golden Boot Awards – Won Golden Boot

2015 Classic Film Hall of Fame: Awarded May 16, 2015 at the Rheem Theatre in Moraga, California