DAYS of Our Lives has planned a special episode to honor Bill Hayes, who died in January.
The actor played Doug Williams on the soap opera from 1970 to 2023.
6
6
DOOL writers are back after months off due to the Writers’ Strike.
Head writer Ron Carlivati revealed the TV line that they film the episodes months in advance and their first new episode will air on May 31st.
Ron missed 120 episodes and is happy to be back and in charge of the series’ 15,000 episode milestone.
“We are already writing for the 60th year [in 2025]but this year, we have the 15,000th episode coming in November,” he told the channel.
“So that was one of the first big things we tackled when we came back. People are aware that Bill Hayes passed away and that we would ultimately write Doug Williams’ death into the series and I decided to center our 15,000th episode around that.”
“We worked really hard to honor Bill and Doug and also use this as a way to celebrate the show and commemorate this milestone,” continued Ron.
Ron said he thought that was what Bill and his wife, Susan Seaforth Hayes, would have wanted.
“So, it’s a way to honor this actor and this character, but make it feel bigger, because we brought a lot of people to honor Doug,” he concluded.
SAD LOSS
Bill died at age 98 on January 12, 2024, in Los Angeles, California.
He died of natural causes and was surrounded by his family.
“He and his wife, Susan Seaforth-Hayes, have remained the foundation of the Williams-Horton family for more than 50 years,” Days of Our Lives said in a statement to Deadline.
Susan plays Julie Williams on the soap.
DOOL executive producer Ken Corday also released a statement.
“I’ve known Bill for almost my entire life and he personified the heart and soul of Days of our Lives. While we mourn and miss him, Bill’s indelible legacy will live on in our hearts and in the stories we tell, on and off the screen,” he said.
People are aware that Bill Hayes passed away and that we were ultimately going to write Doug Williams’ death into the show and I decided to center our 15,000th episode around that.
Ron Carlivati
REMEMBERING A LEGEND
Bill was an actor and recording artist.
His song, The Ballad of Davy Crockett, reached the top of the Billboard chart in 1955.
Bill began his musical career in the 1940s and then turned to acting in the late 1960s.
As for Days, Bill played Doug, a convict and lounge singer, from 1970 to 1984 and then from 1986 to 1987.
He left and returned in 1993.
Bill played Doug again in 1994, 1996, and then 1999–2023.
The actor also starred in Frasier, Matlock and more.
He was nominated for a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Actor on DOOL in 1975 and 1976.
Bill and Susan received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Daytime Emmys in 2018.
6
6
6
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
