EXCLUSIVE Iconic soap star, 81, who married onscreen love interest makes rare outing... can you guess who?

Daily Mail​

22-06-2025

An iconic soap star was spotted running errands during a rare outing in Los Angeles on Wednesday.
This actress, 81, has an illustrious career that began in 1953 and continues to this day.
Since 1968 she has been a cast member of the legendary show Days of Our Lives, but has also appeared in other soaps including The Young and the Restless and The Bold and the Beautiful.
As fate would have it, her career also brought her to her husband.
She met her spouse on the set of Days of our Lives, and their characters even wed on screen. In real life, they remained together until his death at age 98 last year.
Can you guess who this Hollywood legend is?
It's Susan Seaforth Hayes!
Susan was spotted doing a spot of shopping and looked fabulous in a well-coordinated black and blue ensemble that even contained matching jewelry.
She was spotted out with a friend in Los Angeles on Wednesday, appearing content as she caught up on an errand.
Before establishing herself as a soap star, Susan also appeared in legendary shows that include Dragnet 1967, The Wild Wild West, Bonanza, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Perry Mason, and Lassie.
This accomplished TV star has been playing Julie Williams on Days of our Lives since 1968, and has made appearances in 3020 episodes, according to her IMDb.
She played JoAnna Manning on The Young and the Restless from 1984 to 2010 and also made an appearance on the fellow soap hit The Bold and the Beautiful as JoAnna.
For her work on Days of Our Lives, she earned numerous Daytime Emmy Award nominations and in 2018 she and her husband were awarded a joint Lifetime Achievement Award by the organization.
Most recently she was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series in 2020.
The couple truly had chemistry off and on camera; they played love interests who even wed each other on an episode of Days of Our Lives
This iconic star is Susan Seaforth Hayes!
Susan looked fabulous in a well-coordinated outfit that even contained matching jewelry
Her work even introduced her to Bill Hayes, her Days of our Lives co-star whom she married both on and off screen.
Bill played convicted con artist-turned-lounge singer Doug Williams played Susan portrayed feisty troublemaker Julie Olson, and their characters wed on the show.
In real life, Bill and Susan wed in 1974.
They remained together until his death last year at age 98.
The same day as her errand run, Susan was also busy keeping her husband's memory alive.
She donated her husband's collection of scripts from the 1950s variety show he sang in, Your Show of Shows, to the Writer's Guild Foundation.
'What I feared would be a painful goodbye turned into a joyful hello today,' she posted to Instagram alongside a photo of her with the scripts.
Hayes kept her cool in blue-green sandals
'This morning I made a gift of my husband's collection of bound scripts from 'Your Show of Shows' to the Writer's Guild Foundation.
'My Billy was the show's romantic tenor in the 1950s, before his Broadway debut. He purchased the bound volumes from the heirs of Max Liebman, the iconic variety show's producer.
'The foundation's spacious library in Hollywood is open to the public where you may see, read, and enjoy scripts from America's greatest films and TV shows.
'Hilary Swett, the archivist there, is charming, helpful, and enthusiastic.
'So, I gave my darling's treasured memories to a place where creative achievement in writing for entertainment is preserved and honored forever.
'I believe Billy is as happy as I am now ❤️.
'The writers guild foundation, visit sometime. Say I sent you.'
The WGA revealed on their own Instagram that the collection consisted of scripts from producer Max Liebman, and 160 of the scripts were from Your Show of Shows.
The actor, who starred in over 2000 episodes of the show, shared his last scene with his wife in an appearance which aired six months after his death last year.
As he graced fans' television screens one last time, his and Susan's characters, Doug and Julie Williams, reflected on their love story.
After the couple's characters learn their daughter Abigail might still be alive, Julie turns to her spouse and says: 'Chad and Abby never really did have much time together, and you and I had years and years. Did I ever tell you how much I love you?'
'First time I set eyes on you, I was lost. Then, all the trials we had, all those missed connections. And then I finally won the gold ring. And all your songs were for me. All your passionate kisses were mine,' she gushed.
Doug proceeds to look back on how he became a 'new man' to be worthy and deserving of Julie's love.
'Oh, you brought out the best in me. And we've been a good team — good partners, I think,' Julie replied. 'You're a wonderful father. You know, for a guy who grew up in an orphanage, you're quite a family man. You never let anyone in this family down, not ever.'
She goes on to praise him for showing her 'the whole world' and 'every continent' before looking back on their 'little adventures.'
Julie, then, marveled at how after seeing 'all the beauty of the earth' together that their 'love outlasted time.'
Doug goes on to deliver his last line, 'Now you better give me another kiss.'
'My pleasure,' Julie responds, before giving him a smooch.
After his passing, Susan shared a heartfelt tribute to her late husband on Instagram.
'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,' she wrote in January 2024. 'You touched my heart by seeing in him the goodness and joy I experienced every moment of our wonderful marriage. May we all embrace life with the gusto of Bill Hayes — and enrich it with grace and love.'