Helen Hayes
![Hayes in 1947](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9d/Helen_Hayes_1948.jpg)
The annual Helen Hayes Awards, which have recognized excellence in professional theatre in greater Washington, D.C., since 1984, are her namesake. In 1955, the former Fulton Theatre on 46th Street in New York City's Theatre District was renamed the Helen Hayes Theatre. When that venue was torn down in 1982, the nearby Little Theatre was renamed in her honor. Helen Hayes is regarded as one of the greatest leading ladies of the 20th-century theatre. A leading philanthropist in later decades, she was most proud of her 49-year association with the extraordinary Helen Hayes Hospital, a non-profit rehabilitative center overlooking the Hudson River in West Haverstraw, NY. Provided by Wikipedia