Ruth Westheimer, the superstar sex therapist known to millions as “Dr. Ruth”, has died aged 96.
Westheimer died Friday at her home in Manhattan, her publicist Pierre Lehu confirmed. No cause of death was announced.
The sex therapist, who was born in Germany in 1928, survived the Holocaust before relocating to the United States in 1956.
She spent decades working in academia before coming to public prominence in 1980, with the segment “Sexually Speaking” on New York’s WYNY radio network.
The pint-sized star — who was already aged in 50s — quickly became famed for her frank advice on intimacy, helping to de-stigmatize sex for generations of Americans.
Westheimer’s tips were always delivered with cheer and respect, and her cheeky catchphrase “Get some!” became beloved by listeners.
The unabashedly sex-positive doc dished advice on orgasms, masturbation and fantasies, famously promoting the use of contraception and education about sexually transmitted diseases.
Once, when asked about how to perform oral sex on a man, Westheimer memorably responded: “Make believe it’s an ice cream cone!”
Amid her radio success, Westheimer turned to television, hosting “The Dr. Ruth Show,” which began in 1983.
In the ensuing decades, she hosted a slew of other TV programs and penned more than 45 books, a number of which were best-sellers.
Just last year, she was appointed by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul as the state’s honorary ambassador to loneliness.
She is survived by her two children and four grandchildren.
Born Karola Ruth Siegel, Westheimer spent her early life in Germany as the only child of middle-class Jews.
At the age of 10, she witnessed her father being taken by Nazis to the Dachau concentration camp. Her terrified mother subsequently sent Westheimer to Switzerland on the Kindertransport — a rescue train transporting Jewish children out of the country.
Both of Westheimer’s parents perished in the Holocaust, and she spent years in a Swiss orphanage. She immigrated to British-controlled Mandatory Palestine (now Israel) at the end of World War II.
Westheimer joined the Haganah Jewish Zionist paramilitary organization, later known as the Israel Defense Force. On her 20th birthday, she was seriously wounded by an exploding shell during a mortar fire attack on Jerusalem.
After months recuperating in hospital, Westheimer moved to Paris where she studied psychology at the Sorbonne.
Then, at the age of 28, she immigrated to New York City, where she obtained a master’s degree at The New School, working as a maid to pay tuition. She later earned a doctorate from Columbia University.
After years as a teacher and working as a sex therapist at a private practice, Westheimer began her media career at the age of 51.
Her age proved an advantage, with her conservative appearance a contrast to the often racy advice she dolled out to her fans.
In addition to her radio show, she hosted several TV programs on Lifetime, including “Good Sex! With Dr. Ruth Westheimer.” She ended each show urging her viewers to “have good sex.”
“Dr. Ruth” had became a household name by the mid-1980s, with appearances on late-night TV shows hosted by Johnny Carson, Joan Rivers and David Letterman.
She made the cover of TV Guide in 1988.
Westheimer continued to be a media fixture into the 1990s and 2000s, releasing dozens of books, including “First Love: A Young People’s Guide to Sexual Information.”
She additionally hosted a series of instructional videos for Playboy, entitled “Making Love,” and appeared in TV commercials for sodas, cars and mouthwash.
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