Esther Pauline "Eppie" Lederer (née Friedman; July 4, 1918 – June 22, 2002), better known by the pen name Ann Landers, was an American advice columnist and eventually a nationwide media celebrity.
She began writing the "Ask Ann Landers" column in 1955 and continued for 47 years, by which time its readership was 90 million people.
[1] She was the identical twin sister of Pauline Phillips, who wrote the similarly popular "Dear Abby" advice column as Abigail Van Buren.
Lederer was a profile-raiser for several medical charities, and in 1977 President Jimmy Carter appointed her to a six-year term on a cancer advisory board.
[3] In her July 8, 2017, "Dear Abby" column, Jeanne Phillips said her mother liked being a twin while her aunt wanted to be an individual, and this also caused conflict between them.
She was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in January 2002 and died on June 22, two weeks before what would have been her 84th birthday, having refused any medical treatment for her condition.
[12] After Lederer's death, her longtime editors Kathy Mitchell and Marcy Sugar started writing the Annie's Mailbox column.