Life is too short to have bad sex.

July 13, 2024 1:51 PM

Dr. Ruth Westheimer - 1928-2024 Dr. Ruth, America's diminutive Jewish Grandmother with sex on the mind, has passed. With a life that started with being sent to Switzerland from Nazi Germany and then to Israel and the brand new IDF, Dr. Ruth eventually achieved fame as a radio host, author and popular talk show guest as she sought a frank and open discussion of sex and relationships.
posted by drewbage1847 (47 comments total)

Her approach to sex ed. was basically "don't lie" and we are still struggling as a species to get there.

RIP Dr. Ruth. Wish we could have done better by you.

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posted by East14thTaco at 2:00 PM on July 13 [15 favorites]

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posted by humbug at 2:04 PM on July 13

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posted by robbyrobs at 2:07 PM on July 13

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posted by Homeskillet Freshy Fresh at 2:08 PM on July 13

Dr. Ruth was basically as opposite to my parents and grandparents as a person could be. Frank, plain-spoken, possibly funny...another of the main characters of the 80s.

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posted by rhizome at 2:13 PM on July 13 [2 favorites]

I'm thinking of her parody in Dark Knight.
posted by doctornemo at 2:19 PM on July 13 [2 favorites]

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posted by djseafood at 2:20 PM on July 13

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Ruth Westheimer, the Sex Guru Known as Dr. Ruth, Dies at 96


These days, some effort may be needed to recall that Ruth Westheimer had a radical formula and considerable influence on social mores. Talk shows abounded in the 1980s, but until she came along none had dealt so exclusively and clinically with sex. Nor could anyone have anticipated that the messenger of Eros would be a 4-foot-7 middle-aged teacher with a delivery that The Wall Street Journal described as “something like a cross between Henry Kissinger and a canary.”
posted by lalochezia at 2:32 PM on July 13 [9 favorites]

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posted by briank at 2:46 PM on July 13

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posted by gentlyepigrams at 2:49 PM on July 13

Her show is where Cyndi spilled the beans about She Bop.

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posted by credulous at 2:52 PM on July 13 [6 favorites]

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posted by Rufous-headed Towhee heehee at 2:54 PM on July 13

And Richard Simmons too.

From Bluesky:

Richard Simmons and Dr. Ruth are connected by the fact that a ton of Americans thought this was the weirdest, wackiest person they’d ever encountered because a ton of Americans did not personally know any Jewish people.

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posted by The Bellman at 2:55 PM on July 13 [23 favorites]

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posted by Sphinx at 2:58 PM on July 13

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posted by Joey Michaels at 3:00 PM on July 13

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posted by JohnFromGR at 3:11 PM on July 13

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posted by Lesser Spotted Potoroo at 3:33 PM on July 13

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posted by Foosnark at 3:47 PM on July 13

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posted by May Kasahara at 3:48 PM on July 13

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posted by limeonaire at 4:05 PM on July 13

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posted by adrienneleigh at 4:13 PM on July 13

I hope she went out with a bang ...
posted by JustSayNoDawg at 4:16 PM on July 13 [1 favorite]

From that time she was on Quantum Leap <3
posted by cadge at 4:17 PM on July 13 [4 favorites]

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posted by JoeXIII007 at 5:15 PM on July 13

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posted by Ickster at 5:23 PM on July 13

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posted by rhiannonstone at 5:30 PM on July 13

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posted by Lawn Beaver at 5:52 PM on July 13

🍆🍑
posted by Faint of Butt at 6:06 PM on July 13 [2 favorites]

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posted by Silvery Fish at 6:11 PM on July 13

NYT: Some of Dr. Ruth’s Most Memorable Moments "Dr. Westheimer could not help but add a little humor to her earnest tone. Stay away from negative people, too, she advised. “Except if it’s your mother-in-law,” she said. “If it’s the mother-in-law, you have no choice.”
posted by jenfullmoon at 6:12 PM on July 13 [5 favorites]

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posted by mcbeth at 6:15 PM on July 13

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She left an indelible mark on so much of the adult industry, too. I could almost pinpoint when an education resource produced within the industry predated her. She was frank and honest and above all approachable - her stature and delivery was like having a chat with a beloved aunt. She will be missed.
posted by Jilder at 6:16 PM on July 13 [4 favorites]

it was mind-blowing to hear Dr. Ruth talking frankly and enthusiastically about anal sex on my AM radio in rural Canada in the late 1980s.

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posted by Sauce Trough at 6:17 PM on July 13 [4 favorites]

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posted by kitten kaboodle at 6:57 PM on July 13

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posted by Mitheral at 7:01 PM on July 13

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posted by Canageek at 7:30 PM on July 13

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posted by lapolla at 10:05 PM on July 13

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posted by brujita at 10:08 PM on July 13

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posted by Thorzdad at 5:16 AM on July 14

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posted by TwoStride at 9:29 AM on July 14

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posted by kathrynm at 10:21 AM on July 14

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posted by Flight Hardware, do not touch at 10:49 AM on July 14

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posted by Mutant Lobsters from Riverhead at 4:44 PM on July 14

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posted by detachd at 8:40 PM on July 14

I was thrilled to (surreptitiously) listen to her first radio show on WYNY in the early 80s!

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posted by intermod at 8:10 PM on July 15

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posted by carnival_night_zone at 7:04 AM on July 16