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 560 Collections and/or Records:
The Untold History: Negro Servicemen in World War II
Digital item
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_2.2_22_9_0029
The Urgent Call to Abolish the Un-American Activities Committee, 1946-02-28
Item — Box: 27, Folder: 6d
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_2.2_27_6d_0003
Overview
79th (1945-1947)
The Women's Army for National Defense: A Letter of Congratulations
Digital item
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_2.2_23_1_0053
Theatrical Politics: The Performance of Helen Douglas, 1950-01-01 - 1950-01-01
Item — Box: 173, Folder: 10
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_5_173_10_0040
Overview
81st (1949-1951)
Title: Concern for General Prisoner David L. Clay's Parole Status, 1946-10-21
Item — Box: 29, Folder: 3
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_2.2_29_3_0002
Overview
79th (1945-1947)
Title: Concern for General Prisoner David L. Clay's Parole Status
Digital item
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_2.2_29_3_0002
Title: Discharge Procedure for Allen Colvin in the U.S. Army
Digital item
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_2.2_29_3_0004
Title: Request for Discharge of Sgt. Joseph Fasone
Digital item
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_2.2_29_3_0015
Uncovering the Truth: Congresswoman Helen Gahagan Douglas's Voting Record, 1947-05-09
Item — Box: 173, Folder: 10
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_5_173_10_0011
Overview
80th (1947-1949)
Undelivered Telegram Notice from Western Union Telegraph Company, 1946-01-01 - 1946-12-31
Item — Box: 22, Folder: 9
Identifier: CAC_CC_014_2.2_22_9_0021
Overview
79th (1945-1947)