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 511 Collections and/or Records:
Defending Democracy: A Statement Against Un-American Activities, 1947-11-04
Item — Box: 172, Folder: 9
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_5_172_9_0002
Overview
80th (1947-1949)
Defending Democracy: My Democratic Credo, 1946-03-29
Item — Box: 5, Folder: 1
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_8.10_5_1_0004
Overview
79th (1945-1947)
Defense Communication: The Story of Captain Kelley and 'The "Negro" Soldier'
Digital item
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_2.2_23_2_0015
Demobilization and Enlistment Statistics in the Post-War Era
Digital item
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_2.2_29_1_0011
Demobilization Statistics for the Army, September 1946
Digital item
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_2.2_29_1_0012
Democratic Success in Foreign Policy: A Record of Achievement, 1950-01-01 - 1950-12-31
Item — Box: 164, Folder: 33
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_5_164_33_0021
Overview
81st (1949-1951)
Disappointment in Response to The Negro Soldier - Letter from Little, Brown & Company Editor-in-Chief
Digital item
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_2.2_23_1_0030
Disappointment in Response to The Negro Soldier - Letter from Little, Brown & Company Editor-in-Chief, 1946-03-29
Item — Box: 23, Folder: 1
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_2.2_23_1_0030
Overview
79th (1945-1947)
Distribution of The "Negro" Soldier Copies to Requested Individuals in Washington, D.C.
Digital item
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_2.2_23_2_0022
Do you think that everybody in the United States should have an equal opportunity to get ahead?
Digital item
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_2.2_23_2_0003