Truly support
independent journalism
Our mission is to provide unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds the powerful to account and exposes the truth.
Whether it's $5 or $50, every contribution counts.
Support us in offering journalism without agenda.
Ruth Westheimer, the famed sex therapist who revolutionized conversations about sexuality, has died at age 96.
Westheimer, who became famous as “Dr. Ruth,” was a pioneering radio host turned sex guru. Westheimer was in her 50s when she began answering questions from readers of WYNY, a New York public radio station. The radio show ran for ten years and made Westheimer an overnight sensation.
From hosting one of the most popular call-in radio shows to publishing nearly 50 books about sex, Westheimer's net worth was estimated at $3 million before her death, according to Celebrity Net Worth.
“Sexually Speaking,” which initially aired every Sunday at midnight, began attracting 250,000 listeners a week just a year after its debut on WYNY. By 1983, Westheimer’s show was already ranked as one of the top radio shows in New York.
Westheimer launched a television show, The Dr. Ruth Showwhich had attracted two million viewers a week by 1985. He also hosted several other television series, including Ask Dr. Ruth, Dr. Ruth's new showa teen advice show called What's up, Dr. Ruth?and another call program, You're on the air with Dr. Ruth.
As Westheimer became a household name, she soon became a regular on many late-night television shows, especially Tonight's show starring Johnny Carson me tooI had lunch one night with David Letterman.
Over the course of her decades-long career, Westheimer has published no fewer than 45 books on sex and sexuality, including the best-seller Sex for dummies and Sexually Speaking: What Every Woman Needs to Know About Sexual Health.
Westheimer's success came after spending her early years in Germany. She was born in 1928 as Karola Ruth Siegel, the daughter of religious Jews. Her father, Julius Siegel, was arrested by the Nazis, and at age 10, she was sent to live in an orphanage in Switzerland.
She lost her entire family during the Holocaust and in 1945, at the age of 16, moved to British-controlled Palestine. She later served as a sniper in a Jewish paramilitary group in Jerusalem.
In 1950, Westheimer moved to France at the age of 22 to study psychology at the Sorbonne. Six years later she emigrated to the United States and earned a master's degree in sociology from The New School. In 1970, Westheimer received a doctorate in education from Columbia University when she was 42, before training as a sex therapist at New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center.
Her commitment to sex education continued while she was training at Planned Parenthood in Harlem, which encouraged her to teach others about sexuality. Westheimer has taught at several universities, including Lehman College, Brooklyn College, Hunter College, Columbia University, Yale University, Princeton University, and New York University.
Westheimer was married three times. While her first two marriages were brief, her third marriage to another Holocaust survivor, Manfred “Fred” Westheimer, lasted 36 years until his death in 1997.
She is survived by two children, daughter Miriam Yael Westheimer and son Joel Westheimer, as well as four grandchildren.
