Laura Schlessinger

Laura Catherine Schlessinger was born on January 16, 1947, in Brooklyn, New York. She earned a Ph.D. in Physiology from Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons in 1974. Following this, she obtained training and certification in marriage and family counseling from the University of Southern California and received a therapist’s license from the State of California, maintaining a private practice for 12 years. Her career in radio began in 1975 when she made a call to a KABC show, leading to a weekly segment and eventually her own shows on various small radio stations. By 1979, she was hosting a show on KWIZ in Santa Ana, California, which focused on emotional problems and sex therapy. Her early radio work established her distinctive direct communication style.

Schlessinger’s national radio syndication started in 1994 with “The Dr. Laura Program,” which gained significant popularity and was, at its peak, the second-highest-rated radio show nationally. In 1997, Synergy, a company owned by Schlessinger and her husband, sold the rights to her show to Jacor Communications, Inc. for $71.5 million. The show became a joint production between Take on the Day, LLC (co-owned by Schlessinger), Talk Radio Network, and Premiere Radio Networks. In 1999, she entered television with a syndicated talk show titled “Dr. Laura” with Paramount Domestic Television, though this venture concluded in 2001. After ending her terrestrial radio show in 2010, citing a desire to “regain her First Amendment rights,” she transitioned “The Dr. Laura Program” to Sirius XM Radio in 2011, where it continues to be broadcast.

Throughout her career, Schlessinger authored 14 books for adults and four for children, including bestsellers like “Ten Stupid Things Women Do to Mess Up Their Lives” and “The Proper Care and Feeding of Husbands.” She also wrote syndicated columns for various publications like Universal Press Syndicate and the Santa Barbara News-Press. Her contributions to radio were recognized with the NAB Marconi Radio Award for Network/Syndicated Personality of the Year in 1997 and induction into the National Radio Hall of Fame in 2018. Additionally, she established the Laura Schlessinger Foundation in 1998 to support abused and neglected children and has fundraised for military families.