The legendary Bill and Susan Seaforth Hayes posed for the cameras as NBC’s long-running series DAYS OF OUR LIVES was the toast of the town Tuesday evening when the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences celebrated the show’s 45th anniversary with an exclusive red carpet party, reception, and panel discussion. Past and present cast members were on hand to greet fans, and reunite with each other to commemorate this historic television landmark.
Detroit’s Local 4 WDIV-TV NBC Affiliate anchor, Jon Jordan, was the master-of-ceremonies for a panel that spoke of the show’s legacy as they shared clips of the show’s greatest moments. Congratulatory letters were read aloud, sent by Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, amongst others. The evening was complimented by a live webcast and interactive messaging via Twitter and Facebook. The swarm of fans who braved record heat and gathered outside to see their idols were given the surprise of a lifetime when the Academy opened its doors to them so they could watch the show from the audience and share in the excitement.
Panelists included Suzanne Rogers, Drake Hogestyn, Maree Cheatham, Melissa Reeves, Bill Hayes, Susan Seaforth Hayes, Kristian Alfonso, Josh Taylor, Charles Shaughnessy, James Galen Gering, Louise Sorel, Joseph Mascolo, James Scott, Arianne Zucker, Alison Sweeney, Nadia Bjorlin, Jay Johnson, Peter Reckell, Bryan Dattilo, Lauren Koslow, and Mary Beth Evans. The evening was streamed live on www.emmys.com and famed host and actor Ty Treadway conducted exclusive backstage interviews with cast members. Greg Meng, DAYS OF OUR LIVES Executive in Charge of Production, and Eddie Campbell, television and film art director, were on hand to talk about their coffee table book, "Days of our Lives 45 Years: A Celebration in Photos," being released to coincide with the groundbreaking anniversary on November 8, 2010. This book features never-before-seen images of cast, crew, sets, and styling, breaking the “fourth wall” for an extraordinary look inside the studio and into the lives of the stars.
DAYS OF OUR LIVES premiered as the story of a family of doctors and was praised by critics as the highest quality of its genre as it went on to be the first soap to land on the cover of TIME Magazine, won countless Daytime Emmy and Soap Opera Digest Awards, and racked up such high profile fans as Julia Roberts and Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall. DAYS OF OUR LIVES is produced by Corday Productions, Inc., in association with Sony Pictures Television.
It was a SEARCH FOR TOMORROW reunion of former cast mates John Aniston and Maree Cheatham caught up. How wonder was it to see her back on DAYS, albeit briefly, for Alice's tribute.
Indie soaps were also well represented as THE BAY stars Mary Beth Evans and Charles Shaughnessy posed the cameras.
Soaps.com talked to a number of the attendees and you can read their report, "DAYS OF OUR LIVES 45th Anniversary Interviews" here.
Photo Credit: Mathew Imaging "Creating Professional Images For The Industry"
I think the Hayes' have discovered the Fountain of Youth. SSH still looks gorgeous (glad she got rid of the white hair) and it's really hard to believe that Bill is 85 years old.
ReplyDeleteMary Beth Evans looks better than ever, too. I'm glad all three were part of this celebration, even though they're just tangential parts of DOOL at this point. (Much to the detriment of the show, IMO.)