Bill Hayes

Before I got on Days of Our Lives, I had never watched a serial and I had heard all the remarks downgrading the serials. The only reason I joined Days was to be able to stay in Hollywood and have more time home with my children. But now that I'm on Days, I'm very happy. Every day, I'm floored by the quality of the shows! I'm amazed at how well the shows are produced, and it's very satisfying for me, artistically.

-Bill Hayes

William Foster Hayes III

June 5, 1925 – January 12, 2024

Bill was born William Foster Hayes III in Harvey, Illinois, on June 5, 1925. He attended Whittier Grade School and Thornton Township High. In March 1943, while a freshman at DePauw University, he enlisted in the U.S. 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 in the Marine Air Corps, scheduled to fly an F8F off a carrier, when World War II ended. He was awarded the American Campaign Medal and the World War II Victory Medal. 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 University, where he was a member of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity and graduated in June 1947 with a dual major in Music and English.

Hayes was a singer on the Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca variety show Your Show of Shows 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, sold over two million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. 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"; the latter was his only other Hot 100 hit, reaching #33 in 1957.

The character of Doug returned in 1986 and 1987 as well as 1993 and 1996. Later, he was on the show from 1999 onwards. 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.

Hayes graduated from DePauw University with majors in music and English and became a member of Lambda Chi Alpha. Hayes earned a master's degree in music from Northwestern University.^[8] and a Ph.D. in education from West Virginia University.

Hayes was married to Mary Hobbs from 1947 to 1969; they had five children. He was then married to Days of our Lives co-star Susan Seaforth Hayes beginning in 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 supported the West Texas Rehab Center, hosting the annual telethon in Abilene, Texas.

Hayes died on January 12, 2024, at the age of 98

Good Night Mr. Hayes

Stay Tuned

Tony Figueroa

This Week in Television History: January 2024 PART II

January 9, 1959

Rawhide premiered. 

The Western series starring Eric Fleming and Clint Eastwood aired for eight seasons on CBS network with a total of 217 black-and-white episodes. The series was produced and sometimes directed by Charles Marquis Warren, who also produced early episodes of Gunsmoke.

January 9, 1979

Pop luminaries gather at the U.N. for the Music for UNICEF concert

In an effort to call attention to the poverty, malnutrition and lack of access to quality education affecting millions of children throughout the developing world, the United Nations proclaimed 1979 the "International Year of the Child." To publicize the proclamation and raise money for UNICEF—the United Nation's Children's Fund—plans were laid for a concert fundraiser featuring dozens of leading lights of late-70s pop. Staged in the U.N. General Assembly Hall in New York City on January 9, 1979, the show was subsequently broadcast around the world as "The Music for UNICEF Concert: A Gift of Song."

The prime movers behind the Music for UNICEF concert were the Bee Gees, their manager Robert Stigwood and the British television host David Frost, of Frost-Nixon fame. The 1971 Concert for Bangladesh, which raised millions for UNICEF through ticket sales and royalties from the concert film and album, provided the template that the Bee Gees et al. planned to follow, with an important, added twist. The organizers of the 1979 concert asked all participating stars to donate to UNICEF the royalties from the song they performed during the show. Another key difference between the two concerts was a rather dramatic difference in musical esthetics. The Concert for Bangladesh featured Ravi Shankar, George Harrison, Bob Dylan and Eric Clapton performing songs like "Bangla Dun," "My Sweet Lord" and "Blowin' in the Wind." The Music for UNICEF concert, on the other hand, featured ABBA, Andy Gibb and Rod Stewart singing songs like "Chiquita," "I Go for You" and, most improbably considering the occasion, "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?"

Suffice it to say that when viewed with the benefit of hindsight, there is a very strong only-in-1979 vibe about the Music for UNICEF concert: John Denver and Donna Summer on the same stage; Henry Winkler (the Fonz) introducing Rod Stewart; and, most charmingly, the late Gilda Radner introducing "Benny-Bror-Goran-Andersson-Bjorn-Christian-Ulvaeus-Agnetha-Ase-Anna-Faltskog-Ulvaeus-Anni-Frida-Lyngstad. Or to put it another way - ABBA!" It is not clear exactly how much money the Music for UNICEF concert actually raised, or whether all of the participating artists actually signed over all future royalties on the songs they performed. At the very least, the Bee Gees' contribution to the effort, "Too Much Heaven," would go on to be a #1 pop hit and raise more than $7 million for the charitable programs of UNICEF.

 

January 9, 1984

Clara Peller was first seen by TV viewers in the "Where's the Beef?" commercial campaign for Wendy's.

January 9, 1999

The first episode of Providence aired on NBC. 

The show revolves around Dr. Sydney Hansen (played by Kanakaredes), who left her glamorous job in Beverly Hills as a plastic surgeon for the rich, so she could return to her hometown of Providence, Rhode Island, and be with her family. Sydney lives with her father Jim, brother Robbie, sister Joanie, and sister's baby Hannah in a large home in suburban Providence that also houses her father's veterinary clinic. Sydney's mother dies in the first episode but continued to appear to Sydney as a spirit, and to offer advice.

The show ends rather abruptly, with a two-part wedding episode. NBC called this Providence's "winter finale," fully expecting to bring it back in the spring or autumn of 2003, but these plans were eventually scrapped when some cast members, including Melina Kanakaredes, opted out of producing a sixth season.

January 10, 1999

HBO began airing the series The Sopranos.

The Sopranos is an American television drama created by David Chase. The series revolves around the New Jersey-based Italian-American mobster Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) and the difficulties he faces as he tries to balance the conflicting requirements of his home life and the criminal organization he heads. Those difficulties are often highlighted through his ongoing professional relationship with psychiatrist Jennifer Melfi (Lorraine Bracco). The show features Tony's family members and Mafia colleagues and rivals in prominent roles and story arcs, most notably his wife Carmela (Edie Falco) and his cousin and protégé Christopher Moltisanti (Michael Imperioli).

After a pilot of the series was ordered in 1997, the series premiered on the premium cable network HBO in the United States on January 10, 1999, and ended its original run of six seasons and 86 episodes on June 10, 2007. The series then went through syndication and has been broadcast on A&E in the United States and internationally. The Sopranos was produced by HBO, Chase Films, and Brad Grey Television. It was primarily filmed at Silvercup Studios, New York City, and on location in New Jersey. The executive producers throughout the show's run were Chase, Brad Grey, Robin Green, Mitchell Burgess, Ilene S. Landress, Terence Winter, and Matthew Weiner.

January 11, 1949

NBC links its East and Midwest TV networks, celebrating with a special ceremonial telecast. 

Radio network NBC had started experimenting with television broadcasts as early as 1938 and began regular service in 1939, starting with the World's Fair in New York. NBC and CBS both received commercial licenses for stations in New York City on July 1, 1941. NBC launched its first TV network in 1946 by transmitting programs from its New York station to its Philadelphia and Schenectady stations. The company didn't open its Midwest network until September of 1948. The West Coast was added in September 1951, creating the country's first coast-to-coast network.

January 11, 1979

Jack Soo Died. 

Soo was diagnosed with esophageal cancer during Barney Miller's fifth season (1978–79). The cancer spread quickly, and Soo died on January 11, 1979 at age 61. His last appearance on the show was in the episode entitled "The Vandal," which aired on November 9, 1978.

Because his character (and Soo himself) was so beloved, a special retrospective episode was made, showing clips of his best moments, which aired at the end of the season. The most poignant moment of the show came at the end, when the cast members raised their coffee cups in a final farewell toast to the late actor.

Soo's last words to his Barney Miller co-star Hal Linden before his death were: "It must have been the coffee."

January 12, 1949

Arthur Godfrey and His Friends was debuted on CBS-TV. The show stayed on the network for seven years. 

January 12, 1949

Kukla, Fran and Ollie, the Chicago-based children’s show, made its national debut on NBC-TV. 

January 12, 1964

The Beatles made their second appearance on BBC-TV's "Sunday Night at the London Palladium." 

Stay Tuned

Tony Figueroa

Your HOLIDAY SOR-BAY: Lin-Manuel Miranda explains the magic of Three Kings Day

 

Here is a

"HOLIDAY SOR-BAY"

a little spark of madness

that we could use to artificially maintain our Christmas spirit.

Stay Tuned


Tony Figueroa

David Soul

Sometimes I feel an obligation to be accessible as a personality, but for me the driving force since the beginning has always been good work, taking risks, trying new things.

If the door opens, go through it. Always go forwards.

-David Soul

David Soul

born David Richard Solberg

August 28, 1943 – January 4, 2024

David Soul began performing on stage as an actor in the mid-1960s, when he became a founding member of the Firehouse Theater in Minneapolis. He traveled with the company to New York City in 1965, appearing in Bertolt Brecht's Baal and John Arden's Serjeant Musgrave's Dance. Soul first gained national attention as the "Covered Man" appearing on The Merv Griffin Show in 1966 and 1967, on which he sang while wearing a mask. He explained: "My name is David Soul, and I want to be known for my music." The same year, he made his television debut in Flipper.

In 1967, he signed a contract with Columbia Pictures and following a number of guest appearances, including the episode "The Apple" from the second season of Star Trek, he landed the role of Joshua Bolt on the television program Here Come the Brides with co-stars Robert Brown, Bobby Sherman and Bridget Hanley. The series was telecast on the ABC network from September 25, 1968, to September 18, 1970. In 1972, he co-starred as Arthur Hill's law partner on Owen Marshall, Counselor at Law. Following numerous guest-starring roles on TV, including The Streets of San Francisco, he was cast by Clint Eastwood in the film Magnum Force.

His breakthrough came when he portrayed Detective Ken "Hutch" Hutchinson on Starsky & Hutch, a role he played from 1975 until 1979. Soul also directed three episodes of Starsky and Hutch: "Huggy Can't Go Home" (1979), "Manchild on the Streets" (1977), and "Survival" (1977). During his career he made guest appearances on Star Trek, I Dream of Jeannie, McMillan & Wife, Cannon, Gunsmoke, All in the Family, and numerous TV movies and mini-series, including Homeward Bound (1980), World War III, and Rage (1980), a TV movie commended on the floor of the U.S. Senate and for which he received an Emmy Award nomination. Soul also starred with James Mason in the 1979 TV miniseries adaptation of Stephen King's 'Salem's Lot, which was edited and released as a theatrical feature film in some countries.

During the mid-1970s, Soul returned to his singing roots. He scored one US hit with "Don't Give Up on Us" (1977) which reached No. 1 in the US and the UK. "Silver Lady" (1977) hit No. 1 in the UK. From 1976 until 1978, he had five UK top 20 singles and two top 10 UK albums. From 1976 to 1982, he toured extensively in the U.S., Europe, Far East, and South America.

In the U.S., he continued to make guest appearances in various television series. He starred in the miniseries The Manions of America as Caleb Staunton in 1981. He starred in the short-lived 1983 NBC series Casablanca, playing nightclub owner Rick Blaine (the role that was made famous by Humphrey Bogart in the 1942 film Casablanca), and co-starred in the NBC series The Yellow Rose during the 1983–1984 season. He also starred in the television adaptation of Ken Follett's wartime drama The Key to Rebecca (1985) directed by David Hemmings. He later starred as the infamous Florida robber Michael Platt in the TV movie In the Line of Duty: The F.B.I. Murders (1988), which depicted the 1986 FBI Miami shootout, subsequently used as an FBI training film. Soul also directed the episode "No Exit" of the 1980s TV series Miami Vice. In 1987, Soul was cast as Major Oldham in the movie The Hanoi Hilton.

In the mid-1990s, Soul moved to the United Kingdom, forging a new career on the West End stage, including the role of Chandler Tate in Comic Potential and The Narrator in Blood Brothers. He also participated in the successful 1997 election campaign of his friend Martin Bell who ran as an MP for Tatton, as well as Bell's unsuccessful campaign in Brentwood in Essex in the 2001 General Election.

In 2001 and 2002, he appeared in Holby City as Alan Fletcher.

In 2003, he appeared (as himself) in the first series of the BBC's Little Britain. In 2004, he appeared in Agatha Christie's Poirot – Death on the Nile in the role of Andrew Pennington (he had also starred in the 1989 film adaptation of Christie's Appointment with Death). Soul was a guest on the BBC's Top Gear. He was one of the fastest drivers to have appeared on the show, finishing the lap in 1:54:00, but managed to break the car's gearbox (and subsequently a backup car's) very close to the finish.

On July 12, 2004, he took over playing the role of Jerry Springer in Jerry Springer: The Opera at the Cambridge Theatre in London, televised by the BBC in 2005. He returned to the West End in 2006, playing Mack in a new production of Jerry Herman's musical Mack and Mabel at the Criterion Theatre. The production co-starred Janie Dee and was directed by John Doyle. He also appeared in the TV series Dalziel & Pascoe (Game of Soldiers). He had a brief cameo in the 2004 movie version of Starsky & Hutch, alongside original co-star Paul Michael Glaser.

In August 2008, Soul appeared in the reality TV talent show-themed television series Maestro on BBC Two mentored by Natalia Luis-Bassa.

He appeared with Fred Ward and Willem Dafoe in the film Farewell directed by Christian Carion, which received its U.S. release in 2010.

In June 2012, Soul made a one-week appearance with Jerry Hall at the Gaiety Theatre, Dublin in a reprise of the Pulitzer Prize-nominated play by A. R. Gurney, Love Letters. On July 29, 2012, Soul appeared in an episode of the British television detective drama series Lewis, playing a murder victim. He was also featured in the hit album by Fosseytango, singing on the track "Landlord". In 2013, Soul appeared in a cameo role in the Scottish film Filth lip-syncing his own recording of "Silver Lady". In 2014, Soul appeared in a British television commercial for National Express singing "Silver Lady" while driving a coach.

Good Night Mr. Soul

Stay Tuned 

Tony Figueroa

This Week in Television History: January 2024 PART I

 January 3, 1949

Colgate sponsors the early anthology series, Colgate Theater. 

Like most dramatic programming at the time, the show consisted of weekly plays and/or scripts adapted for television. Among many other stories, the show produced two of the earliest TV adaptations of radio programs: Vic and Sade and Mr. and Mrs. North.

January 4, 1984

The first episode of Night Court aired on NBC. 

The setting was the night shift of a Manhattan court, presided over by the young, unorthodox Judge Harold T. "Harry" Stone (played by Harry Anderson). It was created by comedy writer Reinhold Weege, who had previously worked on Barney Miller in the 1970s and early 1980s.

Anderson had developed a following with his performances on Saturday Night Live and made several successful appearances as con man "Harry the Hat" on another NBC sitcom, Cheers. (For the first several years of its run, Night Court aired on NBC Thursday nights after Cheers.) In later seasons, while Anderson remained the key figure, John Larroquette became the breakout personality, winning a number of awards and many fans for his performance as the lecherous Dan Fielding.

The comedy style on Night Court changed as the series progressed. During its initial seasons, the show was often compared to Barney Miller. In addition to being created by a writer of that show, Night Court (like Barney Miller) was set in New York City, featured quirky, often dry humor, and dealt with a staff who tried to cope with a parade of eccentric, often neurotic criminals and complainants. Furthering this comparison, these characters were routinely played by character actors who had made frequent guest appearances on Barney Miller, including Stanley Brock, Philip Sterling, Peggy Pope, and Alex Henteloff. But while the characters appearing in the courtroom (and the nature of their transgressions) were often whimsical, bizarre or humorously inept, the show initially took place in the 'real world'. In an early review of the show, Time magazine called Night Court, with its emphasis on non-glamorous, non-violent petty crime, the most realistic law show on the air.

Gradually, however, Night Court abandoned its initial "real world" setting, and changed to what could best be described as broad, almost slapstick comedy. Logic and realism were frequently sidelined for more surreal humor, such as having the cartoon character, Wile E. Coyote, as a defendant and convicting him for harassment of the Road Runner with an admonition to find a meal by some other means.

Stay Tuned

Tony Figueroa

Your HOLIDAY SOR-BAY: Barney Miller - Happy New Year

 

Here is a

"HOLIDAY SOR-BAY"

a little spark of madness

that we could use to artificially maintain our Christmas spirit.

Barney Miller S02E15 Happy New Year

Stay Tuned

Tony Figueroa