Sue Johanson, the beloved Canadian sex educator who shamelessly shared honest sex advice on programs like Sunday night sex show And Talk about sex with Sue Johanson, is dead. She was 93 years old.
Lisa Rideout, who directed and produced Sex with Sue, a 2022 documentary about Johanson, confirmed the host’s death in a social media tribute on Thursday. In it, she called Johanson “an incredible and unstoppable force” and praised how she “paved the way for how we talk about sex and sexuality today.”
Johanson reportedly died surrounded by his family at a long-term care facility in Thornhill, Ont., a representative told CBC. The cause of death has not been revealed.
Kevin Winter/Tonight Show/Getty Images Sue Johanson
Born in Toronto in 1930, Johanson began her career as a nurse before opening one of Canada’s first birth control clinics at her daughters’ high school in 1970. She would go on to run the clinic in over the next 18 years.
Johanson became popular when she started hosting her own radio show, titled Sunday night sex showin 1984. In an effort to answer any questions that weren’t covered in the health course, listeners were encouraged to call and receive advice from Johanson on all manner of sex-related issues, ranging from the use of sex toys to discussions of taboos in society. surrounding sex.
His non-judgmental approach to every question — as well as his trademark wit and charm — quickly earned Johanson a devoted fan base. Sunday night sex show later became a hit TV show, which aired across Canada from 1996 to 2005, and led to its own hit American spin-off, titled Talk about sex with Sue Johansonwhich ran on Oxygen from 2002 to 2008.
Besides being a television host, Johanson was also the author of three books: 1989’s Talk Sex: Answers to Questions You Can’t Ask Your Parents1991 Sex is perfectly natural but not naturally perfectand 1995 Sex, sex and more sex.
She received the Order of Canada, the country’s highest honor for lifetime achievement, in 2001. She also starred as Dr. Sally, a self-based sex educator, in several episodes of Degrassi High School And Degrassi: the next generation.
Talk with the New York Times in 2004, Johanson said she aimed to encourage people to “always practice safer sex”. She added, “I see sex as a gift from God. Only we can truly enjoy sex, so we have an obligation to learn from it and enjoy it.”
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