Dr. Joyce Brothers Biography

Dr. Joyce Brothers was a psychologist from New York who used mass media to become a celebrity in the 1960s, from TV shows and radio call-in programs to newspaper columns and cameos in the movies.

A 1947 graduate of Cornell University, she earned her doctorate in psychology from Columbia University and married Milton J. Brothers in 1949.

Her winning performance on the TV game show The $64,000 Question in 1955 (as an expert on boxing) led to a brief job as sports announcer on CBS, and by 1958 Dr. Joyce Brothers had her own show.

During the 1960s she became a household name, thanks to many appearances on television talk shows (especially The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson) and her radio show, during which she gave relationship advice to callers.

Before Dr. Ruth, Dr. Laura and Dr. Phil, there was Dr. Joyce Brothers, with her blond pageboy haircut and non-threatening advice.

She had a syndicated newspaper column, a regular feature in Good Housekeeping magazine and two popular books, 1982’s What Every Woman Should Know About Men and 1990’s Widowed (her husband died in 1989).