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 125 Collections and/or Records:
A Call for Equality: Representative Helen Gahagan Douglas' Support of H.R. 792, 1949-05-11
Item — Box: 171, Folder: 3
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_5_171_3_0009
A Comparative Analysis of Voting Patterns: Helen Gahagan Douglas vs. Richard Nixon in the 80th Congress, 1947-48, 1950-01-01 - 1950-01-01
Item — Box: 172, Folder: 2
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_5_172_2_0011
Overview
81st (1949-1951)
A Comparison of Congressional Voting Records: Douglas vs. Marcantonio, 1945-01-01
Item — Box: 173, Folder: 8
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_5_173_8_0001
Overview
79th (1945-1947)
Advocating for Optometrists: A Letter from Helen Gahagan Douglas, 1950-10-30
Item — Box: 164, Folder: 33
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_5_164_33_0022
Overview
81st (1949-1951)
American Foreign Policy: Past, Present, and Future, 1950-10-04
Item — Box: 172, Folder: 9
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_5_172_9_0036
Overview
81st (1949-1951)
Appeal to Congressman Against Indictment of Nineteen Men by Thomas-Rankin Committee, 1947-11-18
Item — Box: 74, Folder: 15
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_3.2_74_15_0026
Overview
80th (1947-1949)
Building a Better Community: Community Homes, Inc., 1947-07-11
Item — Box: 48, Folder: 9
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_3.2_48_9_0002
Overview
80th (1947-1949)
California's Education Crisis: The Need for Federal Aid, 1949-04-25
Item — Box: 172, Folder: 9
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_5_172_9_0007
Overview
81st (1949-1951)
California's Education Crisis: The Need for Federal Aid, 1949-04-25
Item — Box: 171, Folder: 3
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_5_171_3_0022
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