In
its last episode, LEGEND: LOST pays a touching tribute to the late Bill Hayes.
Fans
say, “It’s the end of an era.”
On
Thursday’s episode of the famous soap opera, a longtime cast member made their
last appearance.
Six
months after his death, Bill Hayes, 98, made his last TV appearance in an
emotional scene with his on-and-off-screen wife, Susan Seaforth Hayes.
Fans
have been watching Bill on Days of Our Lives since 1970, when his character Doug
Williams was first introduced as a prisoner who also sang in a lounge.
He
was nominated for two Daytime Emmy Awards, one in 1975 and one in 1976, for
Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series.
Bill
played a regular part on the show until 1984. After that, he had recurring
roles in 1986 and 1987, 1993, 1994, and 1996.
It
was back in 1999 as a full-time cast member, but Dr. Marlena Evans, played by
Deidre Hall, “killed him off” in 2004.
Longtime
fans were thrilled to see Bill’s character, Doug, alive and well on a tropical
island after his fake death on the show turned out to be a hoax.
Bill
married his on-screen wife, Susan Seaforth Hayes, in October 1974. Since 1968,
Hayes has been known for playing Julie Olson Williams.
People
thought they were one of the first “super-couples” on TV, and they are the only
soap opera characters to have been on the cover of Time Magazine.
Later,
Susan was on The Bold and the Beautiful, The Young and the Restless, and Sunset
Beach, a soap opera that didn’t last long.
They
wrote their autobiography together in 2005, which was called Like Sands Through
the Hourglass.
A
Lifetime Achievement Award was given to both Susan and Bill at the 45th Annual
Daytime Emmy Awards in 2018.
THE
LAST BOW
On Thursday, July 11, 2024, Bill made his last appearance on Days of Our Lives.
He
had his last scene with Susan, who is both his TV and real-life wife.
In
the moving scene, the couple talked about their life together and how much they
love each other.
“Did
I ever tell you how much I love you?” Sue, who played Julie, asked Doug, who
played Bill.
TVLine
said that Doug laughed and said, “Nope, you never did.”
“I
was a different person now.” “I had to change to earn you,” Doug said.
“Oh,
you made me feel great. “I think we’ve been good partners as well as a good
team,” Julie said.
“We
did a good job together with raising Hope,” he said.
“You’re
a great dad.” “For someone who grew up in an orphanage, you’re really
family-oriented,” Julie said.
“Never
ever let anyone in this family down.” That’s right, you showed me the whole
world.
“And
after we had our little adventures, saw all the beauty of the earth, our love
outlasted time,” she said.
Doug
asked, “Now you better give me another kiss.”
Julie
said, “No problem.”
The
episode aired on Susan’s 81st birthday, which is a big deal.
Susan
told TV Insider, “The last scene Billy and I shot together was meant to be a
love scene.”
“I
was also allowed to add some lines to the scene between us,” she said.
“‘Give
me another kiss,’ was the last thing I wrote for Billy. So that’s for the
crowd, and that’s from him, she said.
There
were pictures of the stars when they were younger in the post. The caption
said, “To all of you who honored my Billy with a word of remembrance, a sense
of personal loss, or even a tear—I thank you.”
“You
touched my heart by seeing in him the goodness and joy I experienced every
moment of our wonderful marriage.”
“May
we all live our lives with the zest of Bill Hayes and fill them with grace and love,”
she ended with a red heart emoji and “xx Susan.”
IN
MEMORY OF
Bill’s
last scene and episode have already aired, but he won’t be leaving the
long-running soap opera for good.
TVLine
says that in December 2024, the “entire town of Salem” will honor Bill’s
character Doug.
Bill
and Doug, who played Bill on the show, paid their respects to the star on
social media. They were both longtime viewers and fans of the show.
“Today
is both sad and happy for Bill Hayes fans,” one X user wrote.
“I
really want to cry because of what’s going on in our country right now.” Seeing
this? “I think it will all come out,” said someone else on Twitter.
“I
never met Bill Hayes, nor his loving wife Susan, but I grew up watching them,
and it’s like watching some extended part of your family,” said the pair.
