Sex-education icon Sue Johanson is back! New documentary examines her life and legacy
Global News
Sue Johanson is the reason so many Canadians today know how to have safe sex and enjoy it.
Chances are if you grew up between the late 1980s and early 2000s in Canada, you’re familiar with Sue Johanson and her infamous radio and TV program, Sunday Night Sex Show.
A world-renowned sex educator, Johanson taught so many Canadians how to have safe sex and how to enjoy it. And now she’s the subject of a feature-length documentary, titled Sex with Sue, which takes a peek into how her decades-long career helped shape the way we talk about sex and sexuality today.
For years, Canadians — and later, Americans — would tune their television channels and radio dials to the Sunday Night Sex Show, where Johanson would field calls from people all over the continent.
And nothing was off limits. Johanson would wade into conversations, sometimes to the network’s chagrin, about anal and gay sex, fetishes and sexual issues in the queer community, all of which were often taboo topics when her show was on the air.
Adding to her appeal and propelling her to stardom was Johanson’s straightforward, no-frills approach to awkward sex talk paired with her grandmotherly looks and razor-sharp sense of humour. (She “DGAF” before the acronym even became a thing.)
What started out as a small and sometimes controversial radio program eventually skyrocketed Johanson to international fame. She made appearances on Arsenio Hall, David Letterman and Conan O’Brien’s late-night talk shows. She was a recurring guest on the Degrassi franchise. And she travelled across the country, appearing as a guest speaker at countless college and university events.
“I think her first big appearance in the States was with Arsenio Hall. And I remember gathering around the TV to watch that,” Johanson’s daughter, Jane, told Global News.
“And I’ll never forget that fluttering — I was so nervous for her that I realized I can’t watch her being interviewed. It’s not that I didn’t love her or wasn’t proud of her or felt that she was doing such wonderful things. I was nervous for her.”