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Bill Hayes Turned 98 on Days of Our Lives' Set with Susan Seaforth Hayes By His Side
Hayes and his wife were surrounded by his Days of Our Lives cast and crew for the exciting celebration.
Soap opera icon Bill Hayes has been on cloud nine this week after he celebrated his 98th birthday June 5, and his Days of Our Lives cast and family have been there to ring in a new year.
Bill has played fan favorite Doug Williams for decades, celebrating the character's 50th anniversary in 2020. Hayes is married to Susan Seaforth Hayes, his on-screen wife on Days of Our Lives, Julie. Susan and Bill's love story often echoes their on-screen personas, making for an adorable romance.
The Hayes couple shares an Instagram, and on June 8, they posted a delightful video and pictures from Bill's birthday celebrations. In the video, Susan and costar Billy Flynn take Bill by the hand to show him his a surprise: a chocolate cake adorned with a photo of Bill during his early television career.
Bill was elated upon seeing the celebratory treat, beaming alongside his wife of 48 years. "Wow," Bill said before Susan gave a heartwarming speech to the cast and crew.
“So Billy had his 98th birthday on Monday," Susan announced. "He’s been on the show since 1960..." Susan guessed, checking in with her husband, who corrected his debut on the series starting in "1970."
“1970,” Susan clarified. “And he’s enjoyed every minute of it. He was the first performer to sing on daytime television.”
The cast and crew then sang "Happy Birthday." The IG video ended with the sweet message: “Here’s to more years in Salem… and more birthdays, too!”
"Thank you to our cast and crew for celebrating Billy’s 98th Birthday on set today," the Hayes' captioned the heartfelt IG post. "And the double chocolate cake was delicious! 🎂❤️."
Days of Our Lives stars far and wide swarmed the birthday IG post with love. Martha Madison, who plays Belle Black on the long-running soap, commented, "Happy Birthday, Bill. Sending you and Susan giant happy hugs!" Nadia Bjorlin, the talented actress behind Chloe Lane, commented, "Happy Birthday Bill! You’re a legend and I just adore you and Susan! 🙌🎂🥂." Fellow co-star Kayla Brady also sent some love Hayes's way, commenting, "Happy Birthday, Bill. Sending you and Susan giant happy hugs!"
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In March 2023, Days of Our Lives moved to NBC's streaming service Peacock and gave fans the news of yet another mind-blowing milestone: Days of Our Lives is renewed for two more Seasons. Bringing the total to an extinguished 60 Seasons on air, Days of Our Lives fans couldn't be happier to continue to watch how the lives of Salem's residents pan out.
"This programming shift benefits both Peacock and NBC and is reflective of our broader strategy to utilize our portfolio to maximize reach and strengthen engagement with viewers," said Lazarus. "With a large percentage of the Days of Our Lives audience already watching digitally, this move enables us to build the show's loyal fanbase on streaming while simultaneously bolstering the network daytime offering with an urgent, live programming opportunity for partners and consumers."
