Ruth Cox was born on February 6,1953 in northern California. She is the daughter of a forest ranger and teacher and is a 5th generation Californian. Her early performing ambitions leaned toward the stage--she began acting at the age of 10 in school plays as well as with a number of theater companies in her hometown of Sacramento. Her formal acting studies began while in high school at the American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco. In the early 1970's, she enrolled at the California Institute of the Arts.
After graduating from Cal Arts (where classmates included Paul Reubens, Ed Harris, and David Hasselhoff), Ruth worked with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and also performed in Los Angeles with the improvisational comedy troupe, The Groundlings. Early Hollywood breaks came in television with a steady stream of guest starring roles on series such as: "The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries", "Soap", "Knots Landing", "The Runaways" and "Happy Days" among others.
In the 1980's Ruth decided to pursue a graduate degree (in psychology). She received her Ph.D. and married Milton Chen in 1985. In 1986, they were blessed with a daughter, Maggie. Ruth has remained in San Francisco where she teaches at SF State and continues to perform. She also enjoys writing, creating botanical art, and works actively with SAG's BookPals program in the public schools.
