Helen Gahagan Douglas (November 25, 1900 – June 28, 1980) was an American actress and a Democratic politician. She was the second woman elected to Congress from California; her election made California one of the first two states (the other was Illinois) to have elected female members of the House from both parties. She was defeated in an election for the Senate by Richard Nixon after a campaign where he became known as "Tricky Dick" and she as the "Pink Lady."