Legendary sex therapist Dr. Ruth dies at 96

Legendarily outspoken sex therapist and cultural icon Dr. Ruth Westheimer, better known as Dr. Ruth, has died at the age of 96, her publicist said.

Westheimer died Friday at her home in New York City, surrounded by her family.

Westheimer never advocated risky sexual behavior. Instead, she encouraged open dialogue about previously hidden issues that affected her audience of millions. Her recurring theme was that there was nothing to be ashamed of.

“I still hold to old-fashioned values ​​and I’m a little bit of a wimp,” she told Michigan City High School students in 2002. “Sex is a private art and a private matter. But it’s still a topic we need to talk about.”

Westheimer’s giggly, German-accented voice, coupled with her 4ft 7in frame, made her an unlikely-looking – and sounding – outlet for “sexual literacy”. The contradiction was one of the keys to her success.

But it was her extensive knowledge and training, along with her humorous, accepting manner, that propelled her local radio show, Sexually Speaking, into the national spotlight in the early 1980s. She took a nonjudgmental approach to what two consenting adults were doing in the privacy of their home.