Irene Hayes

Irene Hayes (1896 – September 16, 1975) was a Broadway performer, Ziegfeld girl, florist, and restaurateur based in Manhattan. Her stage career spanned 1917 to 1918, during which she appeared in two productions: the musical The Love Mill and the revue Miss 1917.

Beyond the stage, Hayes became a prominent figure in Manhattan business and social life. She acquired the Park Avenue florist Wadley & Smythe, incorporating her own name into the business to form Irene Hayes Wadley & Smythe, a leading Manhattan floral establishment. The addition of her name to the shop was necessitated by a restriction prohibiting new business names on Park Avenue at the time of her purchase. She later took ownership of Gallagher's Steak House following the death of her husband, Jack Solomon.

Hayes was a well-known presence in Manhattan social circles, maintaining a close friendship with the Nordstrom Sisters and holding a regular table at the Ziegfeld Ball until her death. She resided at an apartment on Sutton Place.

Hayes died of an apparent heart ailment at St. Vincent's Hospital in Greenwich Village on September 16, 1975, at the age of 79. She was cremated at Ferncliff. Her death was reported in a New York Times obituary published the following day under the headline "Irene Hayes, 79, Florist Here, Dies."