Bill Hayes (actor)

Bill Hayes
Born William Foster Hayes, III
(1925-06-05) June 5, 1925
Harvey, Illinois, United States
Occupation Actor, singer
Years active 1952-present
Spouse(s) Mary Hobbs (1947-1969) (5 children)
Susan Seaforth (1974-present)

William "Bill" Foster Hayes III (born June 5, 1925 in Harvey, Illinois) is an American dramatic actor and former Billboard Hot 100 #1 recording artist. Following a career as a musician, he achieved fame as an actor when he began playing Doug Williams on NBC's daytime serial Days of Our Lives in 1970. Hayes originated the character of Doug and is the only actor to ever play that role. He still appears in the same role on Days of Our Lives.

Career

Hayes was a singer on the Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca variety show Your Show of Shows in the early 1950s. During the Davy Crockett craze in 1955, three recorded versions of the Ballad of Davy Crockett were in the top 30. Hayes' version was the most popular, and reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for five weeks.[1] It sold over two million copies, and was awarded a gold disc.[2] He also starred on Broadway in Rodgers and Hammerstein's Me and Juliet (1953). He had other small hits in the 1950s including "The Berry Tree" and covers of "High Noon" and "Wringle, Wrangle". "Wringle Wrangle" was his only other Hot 100 hit, reaching #33 in 1957.[1]

His singing career also found its way to his storyline on Days of Our Lives; in the story, Doug was introduced as a convict who was also a lounge singer.

The character of Doug returned in 1986 and 1987, as well as 1993 and 1996. Most recently, he has been on the show since 1999. His character was killed off in the spring of 2004 by Dr. Marlena Evans (to reduce the show's budget). In an elaborate plot hatched by head writer James E. Reilly, Doug Williams turned up alive on a tropical island and went home to his wife.

Bill and his wife, Susan, are also published authors with books including "Like Sands Through The Hourglass" and "Trumpet".

He and his wife Susan have supported the West Texas Rehab Center, hosting the annual telethon in Abilene, Texas.

Personal life

Hayes graduated from DePauw University with a double major in music and English and became a member of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity.

He has been married to Days of our Lives co-star Susan Seaforth since 1974. His character's partnership with Seaforth's character, Julie, is widely considered to be the first supercoupling on the American daytime serials.

Their relationship was so popular that they were featured on the front page of Time magazine in 1976, the first and only soap opera stars to hold that distinction to date.

In 2005, the couple published their joint autobiography, Like Sands Through the Hourglass.

Hayes was previously married to Mary Hobbs from 1947 to 1969; they share five children.

Roles

Awards and nominations

In 2016, the Bill Hayes Prize in Musical Theater was created by the National Association of Teachers of Singing.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Joel Whitburn, Top Pop Singles, 12th edn, 2009.
  2. ↑ Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2nd ed.). London: Barrie and Jenkins Ltd. p. 74. ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
  3. ↑ Wood, Jeff (2013-12-25), Miracle at Gate 213, retrieved 2016-08-18
  4. ↑ Dubin, Charles S. (2000-01-01), The Reunion, retrieved 2016-08-18
  5. 1 2 "1 Feb 1973, Page 12 - The Cincinnati Enquirer at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-18.
  6. ↑ O'Herlihy, Michael (1970-10-30), The Price of Life, retrieved 2016-08-18
  7. ↑ "30 May 1964, Page 23 - The Burlington Free Press at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-18.
  8. ↑ "20 Nov 1958, Page 20 - The Courier-Journal at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-18.
  9. ↑ "16 Oct 1958, Page 39 - The Los Angeles Times at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-18.
  10. ↑ "6 Apr 1957, Page 5 - The Pantagraph at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-18.
  11. ↑ "3 Nov 1957, Page 147 - The Los Angeles Times at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-18.
  12. ↑ "7 Dec 1957, Page 34 - Daily Independent Journal at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-18.
  13. ↑ "11 Dec 1957, Page 38 - Daily Independent Journal at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-18.
  14. ↑ "30 Jan 1955, Page 81 - The Courier-Journal at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-18.
  15. ↑ "26 Jun 1955, Page 115 - The Indianapolis Star at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-18.
  16. ↑ "31 Dec 1955, Page 2 - The Mason City Globe-Gazette at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-18.
  17. ↑ "3 Aug 1953, Page 28 - Tucson Daily Citizen at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-18.
  18. ↑ "30 Nov 1952, Page 29 - The Brooklyn Daily Eagle at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-18.
  19. ↑ "18 Apr 1975, Page 106 - The Los Angeles Times at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-16.
  20. ↑ "2 May 1976, Page 132 - The Odessa American at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-16.
  21. ↑ "30 Oct 1977, Page 80 - The Lawton Constitution at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-16.
  22. ↑ "2 Jun 1973, Page 19 - The Ogden Standard-Examiner at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-16.
  23. ↑ "4 Jul 1976, Page 341 - Independent Press-Telegram at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-16.
  24. ↑ "24 May 1977, Page 25 - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-16.
  25. ↑ "A Celebration of the Super 70s 1970-1980". The Best of Daytime TV, No. 4. Sterling's Magazines, Inc. p. 3. 1979.
  26. ↑ "12 Jul 1974, Page 24 - The Daily Standard at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-16.
  27. ↑ "19 Jun 1977, Page 12 - The Waxahachie Daily Light at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-16.
  28. ↑ "19 Nov 1978, Page 196 - Asbury Park Press at Newspapers.com". Retrieved 2016-08-16.

External links


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