Dr. Ruth, the heavily accented sex therapist who became a mainstay in American culture in the 1980's, died yesterday at age 96.
(Quite the day, July 13th, 2024)
Westheimer, who was Jewish, was born in Germany just before Hitler rose to power and at 10 was sent to Switzerland to escape the Nazi's. Her parents, who remained behind, died in concentration camps.
After the war she emigrated to Israel, joined the IDF, was trained as a sniper, and nearly lost her feet when wounded by mortar fire.
She then moved to Paris, then onto the United States where, relatively late in life, she would use her doctorate in psychology to become a media sensation, dishing out frank sexual advice on radio and TV, all with a heavy German accent.
During an interview with Diane Sawyer, Ruth's husband was asked about their own sex life. His answer? "The shoemaker's children have no shoes."
RIP.
