Douglas, Helen Gahagan, 1900-1980
Person
Biographical:
Helen Gahagan Douglas (1900-1980) began her professional career on the Broadway stage and was deemed a "star" at age twenty-two. By the 1930s, she left the Northeast and moved to California with her husband, Hollywood actor Melvyn Douglas. Although she made only one movie herself--the science fiction film, She--she soon found herself immersed in politics. She worked with the Farm Security Administration and later was elected Democratic National Committeewoman from California. In 1944, she was elected as the representative of California's Fourteenth District in the U.S. House of Representatives. She was successfully reelected to this position in 1946 and 1948. A tireless New Deal Democrat, Douglas was a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee and served as an alternate delegate to the General Assembly of the United Nations. In 1950, she opposed Richard M. Nixon in the general election for the U.S. Senate. The campaign was especially brutal with the Republicans quite "liberal" in their charges that Douglas was a communist. Nixon easily won the election. Though Douglas never entered the political fray again, she remained a tireless public speaker and activist.
Found in 5 Collections and/or Records:
California's Water and Power Crisis: The Need for Development and Conservation, 1949-09-01
Item — Box: 171, Folder: 3
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_5_171_3_0034
Re-Establishing the Civilian Conservation Corps: A Proposal for a Sustainable Future, 1950-05-17
Item — Box: 172, Folder: 9
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_5_172_9_0029
Overview
81st (1949-1951)
Recognition of Colored Soldiers in Congressional Record, 1946-01-01 - 1946-12-31
Item — Box: 22, Folder: 9
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_2.2_22_9_0097
Overview
79th (1945-1947)
The Fight for Democracy: Excerpts from Helen Gahagan Douglas's Speech, 1950-04-11
Item — Box: 172, Folder: 9
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_5_172_9_0005
Overview
81st (1949-1951)
Winning the Peace: A Call to Action by Representative Helen Gahagan Douglas, 1950-01-01 - 1950-01-01
Item — Box: 173, Folder: 7
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_5_173_7_0021
Overview
81st (1949-1951)