 After working in Chicago, Hayes moved to Los Angeles, where she sang with bands at The Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel and acted, beginning her work in films as an extra at $10 per day.Films in which she appeared included "Absolute Quiet", "Idiot's Delight", "Living in a Big Way", "This Gun for Hire", "Great Guy", "The Emperor's Candlesticks", "King of Chinatown", "Woman in the Night", "The Judgement Book", "Trigger Tom", "Along Came Love", "Bunco Squad", "That's My Story", and "The Accusing Finger".On Broadway, she had the roles of Mayme Speer in "Mother Sings" (1935), Hilda Zanhiser in "Mid-West" (1936), Gladys Cay in "Aries Is Rising" (1939, Mazie Stoner in "Blind Alley" (1940), Dean Baxter in "School for Brides" (1944), and Mona Gilbert in "Make Yourself at Home" (1945).