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Helen Gahagan in the 1920s

Helen Gahagan (November 25, 1900 – June 28, 1980) was an American actress and (under the name Helen Gahagan Douglas) a politician. She was of Scottish and Irish descent.

Gahagan was born in Boonton, New Jersey and raised Roman Catholic. Graduating from Barnard College in 1924, she became a well-known star on Broadway in the 1920s. In 1931, she married actor Melvyn Douglas. Gahagan starred in only one Hollywood movie, She in 1935, playing Hash-a-Motep, queen of a lost city. The movie, based on H. Rider Haggard's novel of the same name, is perhaps best known for popularizing a phrase from the novel, "She who must be obeyed."

In the 1940s, Gahagan Douglas entered politics. She was elected to the United States House of Representatives from California's 14th Congressional district as a liberal Democrat in 1944, and served three full terms.

In 1950, Gahagan Douglas ran for the United States Senate against Democratic incumbent Sheridan Downey whom she defeated in the primary, and Republican Congressman Richard Nixon, in a race that her supporters considered a prototypical smear campaign. Alluding to her alleged Communist (or "Red") sympathies, Nixon suggested that she was a "fellow traveller", citing as evidence her supposed "Communist-leaning" votes in Congress — but neglected to mention that her voting record wasn't substantially different from his own. He referred to her as "the Pink Lady", and said that she was "pink right down to her underwear." His campaign manager, Murray Chotiner, even had flyers printed up on sheets of pink paper, to underline the point.

Gahagan Douglas, in return, bestowed upon Nixon one of the most enduring nicknames in American politics: "Tricky Dick". Nonetheless, Nixon won the election, with over 59 per cent of the vote, ending her career in electoral politics.

At its 1979 commencement ceremonies, Barnard College awarded Gahagan Douglas its highest honor, the Barnard Medal of Distinction.

She died at 79 from breast and lung cancer.

Actress Illeana Douglas is her step-granddaughter.

• Jerry Voorhis (Nixon's first political opponent)

• Biographical Sketch of Helen Gahagan Douglas
• Helen Gahagan at the Internet Movie Database