Rita Gail Hayden

Rita Gail Hayden (1995)

**Rita Gail Hayden** (born **Debbie Gail McMillan**, November 29, 1967 - February 7, 2007) was an American model, actress and television personality.

## Biography

### Early Life

Debbie Gail McMillan was born on November 29, 1967 in San Angelo, Texas, the only daughter of Sally McMillan (1952-2014) and Rodney "Rod" Peeters (1949-2008). She was raised by her mother, aunt and grandmother. Her father left her mother, when she told him that she is expecting her child with him. Her mother gave birth to Debbie at seventeen. Debbie never met her biological father. When McMillan was three, her mother married Johnny Waller, a bank teller, and had two daughters with him. She attended Central High School in her hometown. When she was in tenth grade, she moved to Dallas, Texas, to live with her maternal uncle, his wife and her cousins Donna and Wendy. While attending eleventh grade, she started playing truant and did not get promotion to twelfth grade, and dropped out education. She was of Dutch descent on her father's side, and of Anglo-Scottish descent on her mother's side. Her great-aunt was actress Meg Swan.

### Career

#### Modeling

She was feautred on the cover of the March 1992 issue of the entertainment magazine *Bunny* as Rita G. Hayden. Hayden secured a contract to replace supermodel Annette Frey in a Austin jeans ad campaign featuring a series of black-and-white photographs. During this campaign, she took on the stage name "Rita Gail". In 1993, she modeled to a Swedish modelling brand Hjärta, which led her to be pictured on the billboards in Scandinavian countries. Hayden was featured on the cover of *Jeanne* magazine in July 1993, and in *Extra* magazine later that year.

#### Film and television

She made her screen debut in a 1994 drama film *Stay Close*, in which she portrayed a flirtarious model. In 1995, she played a bigger role of Kristen, a secretary in the comedy *Office Chaos*. In 1996, she got her first main role in a romance crime *The Cage of the Heart*, where she played a detective Jenny. In 1998, she appeared as herself in one of the episodes of *Cry Out Happiness*. In 2001, she was given her own reality show. *The Rita Gail Show* premiered on August 6, 2001. In 2003, she returned to acting, and played the role of explorer Vanessa in an adventure film *Discovery of Dream Place*. In 2005, she played her last role in the comedy film *Don't Joke*.

### Personal Life

#### Marriages

While living in Dallas, she met Martin Hayden, and wed him on December 3, 1987 at twenty. She gave birth to their son Derek Neil on July 29, 1988. The couple separated the following year, and divorced in 1990. While performing in Las Vegas in 1993, she met a billonaire Theodore Buckley. During their affair, Buckley was giving expensive gifts to Hayden and proposed to her seveal times. The couple were married on September 7, 1994 in Honolulu, Hawaii. At the day of their wedding Hayden was twenty six, and Buckley was seventy one. They moved to his mansion in Beverly Hills, California, after their honeymoon in Barbados. Hayden was often speculated to marry Buckley for money, but she always responded that she truly loves him. Buckley died in June 1995, after eight months of marriage at the age of 72. From his will, she received Buckley's mansion and half of his net worth, with other half being given to Buckley's son, Theodore Buckley Jr.

#### Birth of daughter

In January 2006, she announced that she is expecting her second child, and gave birth to a daughter Tiffany Dallas on September 19, 2006 in Basseterre, Saint Kitts and Nevis, where Hayden was on vacations. Hayden herself, did not know who is the father of Tiffany, and decided to do a DNA test, in which it turned out that Tiffany's father is musician Jeff Rosales. Rita and Jeff met in March 2004 in Hollywood, and starting their affair two months later. Their affair lasted until November 2005, when Jeff proposed to her. Jeff often referred Hayden as "the biggest love of his life".

#### Death of son

Hayden's eighteen-year-old son, Derek Neil Hayden died on September 28, 2006 of drug overdose. He died following day after travelling back to United States from Saint Kitts and Nevis, with Rita and Tiffany.

### Death and funeral

She was found unconscious in the living room of her residence in Tallahassee, Florida, in the evening on February 6, 2007. Hayden died of drug overdose on February 7, 2007, mixing four substances. Her funeral took place on February 15, 2007 in Tampa, Florida. In her will, she bequeathed her net worth of over a billion and two hundred million dollars and residence to her daughter Tiffany, who then was only four months and twenty six days. After her death, Tiffany moved to her father's mansion in Los Angeles.