Bill Hayes (Doug) and wife Susan Seaforth Hayes (Julie) return to "Days" for the annual hanging of the Horton Christmas ornaments on Tuesday, December 26. It marks their first appearance on the show since February 9. Susan will be doing double duty that week as she also wraps up her month-long stint reprising her role as Joanna Manning on "The Young and the Restless" on Wednesday, December 27.

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Finally a really smart move.

That show is not making a lot of smart decisions lately.

I'm still hoping Hogan will kick the competition's ass, but it's not looking too good so far.

Signed--the REAL EricaKane4life.

Don't see anyone else coming back to Salem for the holidays. The Mickey situation is probably killing the character off. It's obvious that John Ingle was a mistake and Mickey should've been killed off when John Clarke chose to retire. I can't see Clarke coming out of retirement for a long-term deal. I could see him coming back to just to end the character, which is what I'm hoping for. It'll allow flashbacks.

I was thinking only bringing him back for holidays and the like but I do agree with out. That would be for the best.

hopefully he will return to hang his ball it will be depressing to see maggie do it alone and say some lame excuse like he was working late.

Thank god! They are absolutely a necessary presence during the holidays. I'd love for Julie to hang around for a longer stint, as she has done in the past.

Hmm. Yeah, I wonder how they'll handle the Mickey situation? It will be lame to see Maggie doing it herself. I don't know why they don't just recast or bring Clarke back and give the character a final send-off to free Maggie up.

Great news! I would also love to see Clarke back, atleast for the X-mas episode.

Because recasting him the first time was a huge mistake. A character like Mickey Horton should never be recast. The character should've been killed when Clarke retired. However, for uncertain reasons, that was not done. Now, the show has an upcoming problem as this will be the first Christmas where there will be no Mickey.

I'm guessing the show will handle this in one of 2 ways.

1.) Mickey will be away from town working on a case.

2.) Micky may just die before Christmas.

The character should've been killed when Clarke retired. However, for uncertain reasons, that was not done.

JERk had a storyline planned for Mickey and wasn't about to alter his SSK story because John Clarke wanted to retire. Hence, they re-cast.

Yet another serious predicament JER left the show with.

I am happy that Bill and Susan Hayes are returning. They should kill off Mickey, but after the holidays. Have him working on a case.

So glad Bill & Susan Hayes are back. They should be put on contract or at least used as much as they were back during the serial killer storyline. These vets deserve much, much better.

I don't think DAYS should kill off Mickey. they should definitely re-cast. Plus they should bring either Melissa or Sarah Horton back, maybe both. These need to be done to strenghthen the Hortons!

It's sad to hear she's only back at Y&R for a month. They need to keep her full time. Maybe Gloria can pay for her crimes, be written off and they can throw Joanna into the Jill/Will relationship.

I remember when Mickey was being held captive by Stefano in Venezuela. He escaped, was bitten by a snake and recaptured, then escaped again. Maggie refused for a long time to accept his death, but finally started seeing Don Craig. When Mickey finally returned home to Salem and reached the lakehouse, he witnessed Don proposing to Maggie and had a heart attack.

This is a vital character because of his rich history on the show. I wish they would keep the character. Maybe John Clarke would return for an episode here and there. You know the real reason he left was because he was so angry at what JER did to Suzanne.

But if Mickey were to go away . . . what about Maggie and Victor?

i want to see her fall off the waggon!! or develope mutiple personalities from Mickeys Death

Whew!! I'm glad they are back, really glad. When it comes to the history of this show, who can shake the thought of Doug telling Julie he married her mother?? Then, when they were finally happy, Julie runs to mexico for an quick fix divorce because of her scarred face. I could go on, and on...but the fact is this couple made Days a "Couples Soap" before the 1980's and before Luke and Laura.

I didn't completely buy Reilly's snobbish interpretation of Julie, although it was fun to watch. Julie was always the most accepting and forgiving of the Horton clan. Bill was the tormented one, Mickey was the victim, Laura was the psycho, Marie was unstable, and Julie was the one who just couldn't stay away from trouble (mainly in the form of men). A modren day Sami, and that one Reilly got right.

Bring on the Hortons, please. And they can do more than hang ornaments. After all, during the 1970's they kept this show bumping at #1 or #2 in the ratings.

777, right on!