[1] 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.

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.

After five weeks of hitchhiking around the Midwest 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' version was the most popular: It was number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for five weeks,[2] sold over two million copies, and was awarded a gold disc.

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.

[7] Hayes graduated from DePauw University with majors in music and English and became a member of Lambda Chi Alpha.

[10] 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.