Yes, Ruth Madoff is still alive, and as of now, she lives in a beachfront home in Old Greenwich with Susan Elkin, her former daughter-in-law from Mark Madoff’s first marriage. After the death of her husband Bernie Madoff, she has avoided the media.
Madoff: The Monster of Wall Street premiered on Netflix this week, revealing the reality behind Bernie Madoff's famed $64 billion global Ponzi scheme. That fraud was the largest of its sort in history, destroying the lives of numerous individual investors who had put their faith in the once-revered Wall Street statesman. Madoff became one of America's most prolific fraudsters, costing investors billions of dollars. Despite this, he managed to stay beneath the radar of federal authorities for years, allowing him to continue ripping off his investors.
The Netflix docuseries Madoff: The Monster of Wall Street lives up to its title in every manner possible, providing a true glimpse into how Bernie Madoff alone shook the finance industry to its core in 2008. After all, it was discovered that he'd masterminded one of the largest Ponzi schemes in history, based on a $19 billion investment by unwitting individuals over 45 years.
For the time being, the one person closest to him on both a personal and professional level was his wife, Ruth Madoff. So is Ruth Madoff still alive? where is she now? Well, we've got the information for you.
Check Out: Peter Madoff's net worth and Find out where is he today.
Yes, Ruth Madoff Is Still Alive, and as of Now, She Lives in a Beachfront Home in Old Greenwich With Susan Elkin, Her Former Daughter-In-Law From Mark Madoff’s First Marriage!
Ruth Madoff moved to an unassuming condo development in Old Greenwich after Andrew died in 2014, where she lived in a one-bedroom apartment. Ruth Madoff now shares a $4.4 million beachfront home in Old Greenwich with Susan Elkin, her former daughter-in-law from Mark Madoff's first marriage.
Ruth Madoff met Bernard Madoff for the first time in the mid-1950s at a party in a mutual friend's basement, and despite their 3-year age difference, they fell in love hard and fast. According to the Netflix original documentary series, the Queens residents' relationship was essential to a high school sweetheart story, beginning when the former was only 13 years old. Ruth graduated in 1958, and the couple married on November 28, 1959, shortly after.
They went on to establish their careers and had two boys, Mark (1964) and Andrew (1966). It was unusual for women to pursue higher education at the time, yet Ruth not only attended college and university, but she also worked in the stock market as Bernie's bookkeeper. She'd earned a Bachelor's degree in Psychology from Queens College in 1961 and a Master's degree in Nutrition from New York University in 1992, demonstrating her intellect.
As a result, it's no wonder that she later rose to the position of Director at Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities, became a socialite, and founded the Madoff Charitable Foundation. However, despite her sharp senses, Ruth had no idea that her spouse was a nasty con man until he came clean in early December 2008. She was then scrutinized for a long time because of her friendship with the fraudster, as well as the fact that her office was just around the corner from Bernie's.
Even though Ruth Madoff knew her husband was a criminal, she couldn't stop loving him or letting him go, leading the couple to forge a suicide pact to escape facing the reality. They both took a bunch of sleeping drugs on Christmas Eve 2008 to suicide but awoke the next morning with no medical complications. However, the sad aspect of Bernie's incarceration is that their sons urged her to choose between them/their families and him, only for her to choose her life partner.
The anguish of this entire incident was so intense that Mark committed himself on December 11, 2010- two years to the day after his father's incarceration- prompting Ruth to permanently cut ties with Bernie. The matriarch grew closer to Andrew after that, but he died of Mantle Cell Lymphoma on September 3, 2014.
We should also add, that Ruth Bernie never divorced. Ruth reportedly did everything she could to avoid public notice and the hysteria in the months following her husband's incarceration, including moving houses and dying her hair red. She did lose access to their $27 million private plane, 88-foot megayacht, Florida and New York properties, and most of their other assets around this time, but she still lives a very affluent life. That's because she was allegedly allowed to keep about $2 million of the $80 million she inherited.
According to rumors, the remainder was handed to Bernie's estate to compensate his victims. Ruth has even agreed to give up her remaining possessions when she dies. In terms of Ruth's current situation, we can tell you that she has been living in a 4,000-square-foot waterfront property in Old Greenwich, Connecticut, since 2020 (valued at $3.8 million as of 20223). Susan Madoff Elkin, her previous daughter-in-law and Mark's first wife, and her current husband, Gotham Technologies President Richard Elkin, jointly own the property.
Ruth Madoff is still alive but does not appear in Madoff: The Monster of Wall Street in person. Instead, the series features journalists, victims, whistleblowers, investigators, and former Madoff workers recounting how the money-hungry investor perpetrated the largest Ponzi scam in history.
Visit Celebs In-depth for more interesting stories about your favorite celebs.
