William Foster Hayes III (born June 5, 1925) is an American actor and recording artist. His song “ The Ballad of Davy Crockett“ hit the top of the '' Billboard'' charts in the spring of 1955. Following a successful career as a musician which began in the late 1940s, Hayes began to focus on dramatic acting parts in the late 1960s, which led him to be cast in a role that gained him additional fame to a younger generation. This new chapter began in 1970 when he originated the character of Doug Williams on NBC's '' Days of Our Lives'', which he continues to play to date.

Early life and career

Bill was born William Foster Hayes III in

Harvey, Illinois Harvey is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 20,324 at the 2020 census. Harvey is bordered by the villages of Dixmoor and Riverdale to the north; Dolton, Phoenix, and South Holland to the east; East Hazel C ...

, on June 5, 1925. He attended Whittier Grade School and Thornton Township High.Bill Hayes - Biography
www.45cat.com. Retrieved July 25, 2021. In March 1943, while a freshman at DePauw University, he enlisted in the Navy Air Corps, and received his welcome letter on his eighteenth birthday ordering him to report for active duty on July 1. For the next 27 months, he trained to be a fighter pilot. He was two weeks shy of receiving his commission as a

2nd Lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until 1 ...

in the Marine Air Corps, scheduled to fly an F8F off a carrier, when

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

ended. He was awarded the

American Campaign Medal The American Campaign Medal is a military award of the United States Armed Forces which was first created on November 6, 1942, by issued by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The medal was intended to recognize those military members who had perfo ...

and the

World War II Victory Medal The World War II Victory Medal is a service medal of the United States military which was established by an Act of Congress on 6 July 1945 (Public Law 135, 79th Congress) and promulgated by Section V, War Department Bulletin 12, 1945. The Wo ...

. Given the choice of reenlisting in the Navy or getting out immediately, he opted for civilian life. After five weeks of hitch-hiking around the Mid-West to celebrate with buddies who were also coming home, he returned to complete his Bachelor of Arts requirements at DePauw, getting a degree in June 1947, majoring in Music and English. Hayes was a singer on the Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca variety show ''

Your Show of Shows ''Your Show of Shows'' is a live 90-minute variety show that was broadcast weekly in the United States on NBC from February 25, 1950, through June 5, 1954, featuring Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca. Other featured performers were Carl Reiner, Howa ...

'' in the early 1950s. He had a supporting role in the 1952 black comedy '' Stop, You're Killing Me''. 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: It was #1 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for five weeks, Joel Whitburn, ''Top Pop Singles'', 12th edn, 2009. sold over two million copies, and was awarded a

gold disc Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

. He also starred on Broadway in

Rodgers and Hammerstein Rodgers and Hammerstein was a theater-writing team of composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and lyricist-dramatist Oscar Hammerstein II (1895–1960), who together created a series of innovative and influential American musicals. Their popular ...

'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"; the latter was his only other Hot 100 hit, reaching #33 in 1957. On ''Days of Our Lives'', Hayes 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. In an elaborate plot hatched by head writer James E. Reilly, Doug turned up alive on a tropical island and went home to his wife. In 2017, ''World by the Tail'', a documentary about Bill Hayes's life, was released and made available for his fans to watch online. On June 27, 2017, while present in the show's audience, Hayes was featured in an impromptu interview on a web special for '' The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon''; in his heyday, he had been a guest on the Johnny Carson-hosted version of the show.

Personal life

Hayes graduated from DePauw University with majors in music and English and became a member of

Lambda Chi Alpha Lambda Chi Alpha (), commonly known as Lambda Chi, is a college fraternity in North America which was founded at Boston University in 1909. It is one of the largest social fraternities in North America, with more than 300,000 lifetime members a ...

. Hayes earned a master's degree in music from Northwestern University and a Ph.D. in education from West Virginia University. Hayes was previously married to Mary Hobbs from 1947 to 1969; they had five children. He has been married to ''Days of our Lives'' co-star Susan Seaforth Hayes since 1974. Their relationship was so popular that they were featured on the cover of ''Time'' in 1976, the only soap opera stars to hold that distinction to date. In 2005, the couple published their joint autobiography, ''Like Sands Through the Hourglass''. The couple also supports the West Texas Rehab Center, hosting the annual telethon in Abilene, Texas.

Roles

*'' Days of Our Lives'' ( Doug Williams: 1970 -1984; 1986–1987; 1993; 1994; 1996; 1999–present (recurring) *Miracle at Gate 213 (TV Film) – Louis Darling (2013) *Frasier (TV Series) (''Frasier Has Spokane'') – Sully (2002) *Matlock (TV Series) (''The Reunion)'' – George Dutton (1988) *''

Password Plus ''Password Plus'' and ''Super Password'' are American TV game shows that aired separately between 1979 and 1989. Both shows were revivals of ''Password'', which originally ran from 1961 to 1975 in various incarnations. With only subtle differen ...

'' – Himself (1979) *Cade's County (TV Series) (1972) *The Interns (TV Series) (''The Price of Life)'' – Vern Anderson (1970) *The Wednesday Play – In Two Minds (1967) *Once Upon a Mattress (TV Special) – Minstrel (1964) *

The Cardinal ''The Cardinal'' is a 1963 American drama film produced independently, directed by Otto Preminger and distributed by Columbia Pictures. The screenplay was written by Robert Dozier, based on the novel of the same name (1950) by Henry Morton Robi ...

(Film) – Frank (1964) *True Story (TV Series) – Larry Foster (1961) *Here's Hollywood (TV Variety Series) – Himself-multiple appearances (1961) *Show of the Week-Music of the Thirties – Himself (1961) *Music for a Christmas Night – The Gift of Song (TV Music Special) – Himself (1960) *Bell Telephone Hour (TV Variety Series) – Himself (1960) *Voice of Firestone (TV Variety Series) – Himself (1959) *Oldsmobile Music Theater (TV Drama Series) – Host (1959) *Kiss Me Kate (TV Special) – Bill Calhoun/Lucentio (1958) *Little Women (TV Special-Musical) – John Brooke (1958) *Yeoman of the Guard (Hallmark Hall of Fame TV Special) – Colonel Fairfax (1957) *The Big Record (TV Variety Series) – Himself-multiple appearances (1957) *Club 60 (TV Variety Series) – Himself (1957) *Max Liebman Presents (TV Variety Series) – Himself (1956) *The Ernie Kovacs Show (TV Variety Series) – Himself (1956) *Rocket Revue (TV Variety Series) – Himself (1956) *Variety (TV Special) (1955) *Percy Faith Hour (TV Variety Series) (1955) *The Woolworth Hour (TV Variety Series) (1955) *'' General Foods 25th Anniversary Show: A Salute to Rodgers and Hammerstein'' (1954) *Ed Sullivan's Toast of the Town (TV Variety Series) (1953) *Stop, You're Killing Me (Film) – Chance Whitelaw (1952)

Awards and nominations

Daytime Emmy Award The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York–based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences ...

: Outstanding Actor, Daytime Drama Series (nomination) (1975 and 1976) * Soapy Awards: Actor of the Year (1977) *''Daytime TV Magazine'' Reader's Poll: Best Actor (1973, 1976, 1977, and 1978) *''Afternoon TV Magazine'': Best Actor (1974) *''Photoplay Magazine'' Gold Medal Award: Favorite Daytime Male Star (1977 and 1978) In 2016, the Bill Hayes Prize in Musical Theater was created by the National Association of Teachers of Singing. On April 29, 2018, the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences presented Bill Hayes and Susan Seaforth Hayes with Lifetime Achievement Awards at the 45th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards.

References

External links