Mona Riklis Ackerman

Mona Ackerman, whose experience as a clinical psychologist informed a weekly advice column for The Huffington Post, died in December 2012 in Manhattan. She was 66. The cause was ovarian cancer, said Richard Cohen, her longtime companion and a columnist for The Washington Post. Dr. Ackerman ran a private practice on the Upper East Side of Manhattan before a meeting with Arianna Huffington led to “Dr. Mona Knows,” a question-and-answer column. Mona Riklis was born in Tel Aviv on May 22, 1946, to Judith and Meshulam Riklis. They emigrated to America, where Mr. Riklis became a billionaire by pioneering leveraged buyouts and junk bond deals. Her marriage to Irwin Ackerman, in 1966, ended in divorce. She graduated from New York University and earned her Ph.D. from the Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology at Yeshiva University. In addition to Mr. Cohen, Dr. Ackerman is survived by her father; a sister, Marcia Riklis; a brother, Ira Riklis; a half-brother, Kristofer Zadora Riklis; a half-sister, Kady Zadora Riklis; a son, Ari Ackerman; a daughter, Gila Steinbock; and two grandchildren.