Julie Strain

Strain was born in Concord, California. A graduate of Diablo Valley College, she had an extensive athletic background. She later moved to Las Vegas and later Hollywood, California. Julie Strain was Penthouse Pet of the Month for June 1991 and Penthouse Pet of the Year for 1993.

With over 100 films to her credit, Strain was nicknamed the "Queen of B-movies". She modelled for many comic book artists, including Simon Bisley, Milo Manara, and Kevin Eastman, whom she would later marry. Her likeness was also used in animation. She provided the voice for the main character in the animated film Heavy Metal 2000, and was the basis for the third-person shooter video game Heavy Metal: F.A.K.K. 2. She was a frequent guest panelist at comic book conventions like San Diego Comic-Con.

Strain was one of the main subjects and was interviewed for the documentaries Some Nudity Required (1998) and Something to Scream About (2004). Her sister, Lizzy Strain, was interviewed for the later as well, but did not make the final cut. As a favor to Julie, Lizzy's interview was included as a Bonus Feature on the DVD release.

In 1997, Heavy Metal published Strain's autobiography, Six Foot One and Worth the Climb. It was heavily illustrated with stills from her film and modelling career, plus paintings by Boris Vallejo, Julie Bell and Olivia De Berardinis.