About the Screening
Ask Dr. Ruth chronicles the life of Dr. Ruth Westheimer, a Holocaust survivor who became America’s most famous sex therapist. With her diminutive frame, thick German accent, and uninhibited approach to sex therapy and education, Dr. Ruth transformed the conversation around sexuality. As she approaches her 90th birthday and shows no signs of slowing down, Dr. Ruth revisits her painful past and unlikely path to a career at the forefront of the sexual revolution.
Screening of film is followed by a moderated post-film conversation with Director Ryan White and Dr. Ruth Westheimer, moderated by film critic Robert Abele, plus a reception at Landmark Wine Bar.
Ryan White, Director
Ryan White is the director of Ask Dr. Ruth. Most recently, White directed The Keepers, a 7-part Emmy-nominated documentary series for Netflix, and HBO's The Case Against 8, which won the Directing Award at Sundance and was shortlisted for the Academy Award. White's additional films include Serena (Epix), Good Ol’ Freda (Magnolia Pictures), and Pelada (PBS, Cinetic).
Dr. Ruth Westheimer, Subject
Dr. Ruth Westheimer is best known as a sex therapist and media personality, but that is only a small part of her rich story. Born in Germany in 1928, Dr. Westheimer was sent to Switzerland at age 10 to escape the Holocaust, which wiped out her entire immediate family. At age 17 she went to then Palestine, where she joined the Israeli freedom fighters, was trained to be a sniper and was seriously wounded in a bomb blast. She later moved to Paris to study at the Sorbonne and in 1956 went to the US, where she obtained her Master’s degree in sociology from the Graduate Faculty of the New School of Social Research and a doctorate of education from Columbia University Teacher's College.
She later studied human sexuality under Dr. Helen Singer Kaplan at New York Hospital-Cornell University Medical Center, where she became an adjunct associate professor. She has subsequently taught courses and delivered lectures at various institutions of higher learning around the world.
She has authored 46 books and has executive-produced five documentaries. Dr. Westheimer, a widow, has two children, four grandchildren and resides in New York.