Kathryn Hays

Hays was born as Kay Piper in Princeton, Illinois, on July 26, 1934, the only child of Roger and Daisy (Hays) Piper. Her parents divorced shortly after her birth. Hays was raised by her mother, who was a bookkeeper and a banker, and her stepfather, salesman Arnold Gottlieb.

She grew up in Joliet.

She took classes at Northwestern University, and worked as a model. In 1962, she changed her name to Kathryn Hays (using her mother's maiden name as her last name).

Hays' first marriage was to salesman Sidney Steinberg in 1957, with whom she had a daughter, Sherri. In 1966, Hays married actor Glenn Ford; the couple divorced in 1969. Her third husband was Wolfgang Lieschke, who was employed in the advertising industry.