| Helen Bishop | |
|---|---|
| |
| Portrayed by | Darby Stanchfield |
| First appearance | Ladies Room |
| Final appearance | The Inheritance |
| Details | |
| Gender | Female |
| Occupation | Jewelery Store Clerk |
| Relations | |
| Husband | Unnamed man |
| Ex-Husband | Dan Bishop |
| Child(ren) | Glen Bishop (son) Unnamed stepdaughter |
Biography[]
Helen Bishop was the single mother of two children--in 1960 she had a son Glen who was about 8 years old, and another child who was a baby. At that time she recently moved into a house in the same neighborhood in Ossining as the Draper family, having recently become divorced after her husband's infidelity. She worked in a jewelry store and volunteered for John F. Kennedy’s presidential campaign. Helen's status as a divorcee and her habit of taking long walks alone garnered criticism and suspicion from women in the neighborhood. At least one of the married men in the neighborhood made a pass at the recently single Helen.
Initially, Betty Draper was scornful of Helen, looking down on her for her divorced status, but she acted outwardly friendly towards her and helped her out by babysitting. A permanent rift developed between Helen and Betty Hofstadt when Helen found out that Betty had given Helen's son Glen a lock of hair while babysitting him one evening. When Helen confronted Betty at the grocery store, Betty slapped her in the face. Helen’s ex-husband worked in the insurance industry.
By several years later, Helen had gotten remarried and her son Glen expressed dissatisfaction with how he was treated by his newly remarried mother and her new husband. Soon afterwards, Glen was sent to boarding school and was out of the house.