Westheimer, Ruth K. (Ruth Karola), 1928-

Ruth Westheimer, better known as Dr. Ruth, is a German-American sex therapist, talk show host, author, professor, and Holocaust survivor. She was born in Germany to a Jewish family. As the Nazis came to power, her parents sent her on a Kindertransport to Switzerland for safety; her parents were subsequently murdered in concentration camps. After World War II ended, she immigrated to British Mandatory Palestine. She joined the Haganah, and was trained as a sniper; she was seriously wounded during the 1947–1949 Palestine war. Before immigrating to the United States in 1956 she lived in Paris, France and studied psychology at the Sorbonne. Westheimer earned an M.A. from The New School in 1959, and a doctorate from Teachers College, Columbia University.

Westheimer's media career began in 1980 with the radio call-in show Sexually Speaking. She then launched a television show, The Dr. Ruth Show.