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Born Karola Ruth Siegel, late acclaimed sex therapist Dr. Ruth Westheimer—known to the masses as simply “Dr. Ruth”—passed away peacefully at her home in New York City this past Friday. She was 96 years old and the cause of death was not publicly shared.
A figure known all throughout the country, Dr. Ruth was particularly beloved in New York, where Governor Kathy Hochul appointed her with the honorary title of nation's first Ambassador to Loneliness back in 2023.
“I am deeply honored and promised the Governor that I will work day and night to help New Yorkers feel less lonely!” Westheimer said back then.
As mentioned by the New York Times in her obituary, Dr. Ruth was a Holocaust survivor whose parents were killed by the Nazis during World War II. In 1956, she moved to a NYC apartment in Washington Heights, where she lived until the day of her death.
An important part of the city's cultural canon, Dr. Ruth has given out advice to New Yorkers for years, tackling all sorts of topics, from intimacy while living in cramped quarters ("try to have sex when [roommates] aren't around") to the world of online dating ("I welcome any dating service if people are intelligent and careful and if you know that people can lie and say they’re six feet tall.").
Her passing has clearly affected many people. Below, find a collection of some of the most heartwarming reactions to the death of Dr. Ruth:
Many older people might’ve known Dr. Ruth Westheimer as the coolest, sex positive baddie ever but my generation knew her as Dr. Ruth Wordheimer on Between the Lions. She challenged the medias views of sex and was so wise and sweet. Rip icon 💔 pic.twitter.com/bLs8q5fCpr
— Rendy Jones (@rendy_jones) July 13, 2024
A few years ago, I got to interview Dr. Ruth in her home. It was amazing to sit with someone who lived through, and fought through, some of the most horrific chapters in history, and who retained an incredible sense of optimism and humor.https://t.co/6cr36D2mDN
— Emma Green (@emmaogreen) July 15, 2024
Today, we mourn the loss of Dr. Ruth, a longtime New Yorker and friend of parks, who fought for @FortTryon_Park and the parks of northern Manhattan with the same fire and humor that she displayed in life. pic.twitter.com/7wHEvyVJXl
— NYC Parks (@NYCParks) July 13, 2024
Dr. Ruth was talking about things in 1985 that people don’t talk about today. Also, we totally would have watched a Dr. Ruth animated series. R.I.P. pic.twitter.com/TVA19ow6p5
— Found Footage Fest (@foundfootage) July 14, 2024
I am deeply saddened by the passing of Dr. Ruth Westheimer. A Holocaust survivor who went on to realize the American Dream, Dr. Ruth was a force of nature who led an extraordinary life and left behind an equally extraordinary legacy.
— Ritchie Torres (@RitchieTorres) July 13, 2024
May her memory be a blessing. pic.twitter.com/UCL4ADwQp7
She taught us to talk openly about sexual pleasure or dysfunction. What a force Dr. Ruth Westheimer was. She’s gone at age 96. A life, definitely, well lived pic.twitter.com/lPAw0kbb7j
— Deborah Roberts (@DebRobertsABC) July 13, 2024
It’s really nice to see Dr. Ruth getting her flowers from younger sex experts. Pretty remarkable that she remained unproblematic and managed to be a sex positive figure in an aggressively problematic and sex hostile culture.
— Brandon Wilson (@Geniusbastard) July 13, 2024