She was
Playboy magazine's
Playmate of the Month for February 1986, and played "Julie Costello" on
Growing Pains until she was fired on series regular
Kirk Cameron's insistence, for having posed nude in
Playboy magazine.
In 1989, officials of North Carolina's Azalea Festival stripped Julie McCullough of her crown as Azalea Queen of Wilmington, because of controversy surrounding her appearance as a
Playboy centerfold.
The Growing Pains scandal
Julie McCullough landed the role of nanny Julie Costello on the television show
Growing Pains in 1989. She appeared in eight episodes until she was fired in 1990, which stemmed from series star
Kirk Cameron's conversion to
evangelical Christianity, a conversion that, according to
The E! True Hollywood Story episode focusing on the show, served to alienate him from his fellow cast members, as he did not invite any of them to his wedding. He called for McCullough's termination because of his objections to her having posed nude in
Playboy, and accused the show's producers of promoting pornography. A decade later, Cameron apologized to his TV family, attributing his prior behavior to his lack of maturity, but did not reconcile with McCullough, who claims that Cameron refused to speak to her during a later encounter, and who remains critical of him, stating that she lost a lot from the public criticism she endured from the controversy. Although McCullough herself is
Catholic, she 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. ” After the
Growing Pains scandal, McCullough made several television appearances on
Beverly Hills, 90210,
Jake and the Fatman,
Harry and the Hendersons and
Drexell's Class.
McCullough in 2007
McCullough now works as a stand-up comedian, and has performed at the
Hollywood Improv, the
Palms Hotel and Casino, and the
Laugh Factory.
I think she could have made it on her own as an actress without PB. A pity.