By 1953, she had joined the cast of the television sitcom "Make Room for Daddy". For her portrayal as the first wife of Danny Thomas, Hagen received three Emmy Award nominations but after three seasons, she grew dissatisfied with the role and left the series. Thomas, who also produced the show, reportedly did not appreciate Hagen's departure and her character was killed off rather than recast, the first TV character to be killed off in a family sitcom. Marjorie Lord was cast a year later as Danny's second wife and played opposite Thomas successfully for the remainder of the series.