Helen Gahagan Douglas
Helen Gahagan Douglas (born Helen Mary Gahagan; November 25, 1900 – June 28, 1980) was an American actress and politician. Her career included success on Broadway, as a touring opera singer, and in Hollywood films. Her portrayal of the villain in the 1935 movie She inspired Disney's Evil Queen in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937).
"Helen Douglas" redirects here. For the Scottish book artist, see Helen Douglas (book artist).
Helen Gahagan Douglas
June 28, 1980 (aged 79)
New York City, U.S.
2
- Walter H. Gahagan (father)
- Lillian Rose Mussen (mother)
Barnard College (did not graduate)
- Actress
- politician
In politics, she was the third woman and first Democratic woman elected to Congress from California; her election made California one of the first two states (along with Illinois) to elect female members to the House from both parties. In the 1950 United States Senate election in California, she unsuccessfully ran for the United States Senate, losing to Republican Richard Nixon. The campaign became symbolic of modern political vitriol, as both Gahagan's primary opponent Manchester Boddy and Nixon referred to her as "pink right down to her underwear", suggesting Communist sympathies.
She was married to fellow actor Melvyn Douglas, and they had two children, Peter and Mary.[1]
Early life[edit]
Helen Mary Gahagan was born in Boonton, New Jersey,[2] of Scotch-Irish descent.[3] She was the eldest daughter of Lillian Rose (Mussen) and Walter H. Gahagan, an engineer who owned a construction business in Brooklyn and a shipyard in Arverne, Queens; her mother had been a schoolteacher.[2] She was reared Episcopalian.[4][5] Gahagan was raised at 231 Lincoln Place[6] in the Park Slope area of Brooklyn, an upper-middle-class neighborhood. She attended the prestigious Berkeley Carroll School,[7] where she "attracted the favorable attention of Brooklyn critics through her performance in school plays".[8] Following an argument with her father, who did not believe becoming an actress was a suitable occupation for a woman, she was sent to study at the Capen School for Girls in Northampton, Massachusetts.[6]
Gahagan gained admittance to Barnard College of Columbia University, class of 1924.[9] To the dismay and shock of her father she left after two years, without finishing her degree, to pursue an acting career.[7]
Legacy[edit]
Senator Alan Cranston of California eulogized her on the floor of the Senate, on August 5, 1980, saying, "I believe Helen Gahagan Douglas was one of the grandest, most eloquent, deepest-thinking people we have had in American politics. She stands among the best of our 20th-century leaders, rivaling even Eleanor Roosevelt in stature, compassion and simple greatness."[42]
A collection of Helen Gahagan Douglas's papers spanning her life and career are held by the Carl Albert Center.[43]