Topline
Representatives for fitness guru Richard Simmons say the now 75-year-old star is “healthy and happy,” despite a post to social media that suggested he was “dying” as he encouraged his fans to “enjoy your life to the fullest every single day.”
Key Facts
Simmons, who abruptly retired from public life in 2014 and has not made any major appearances since, posted to Facebook and X on Monday, “I have some news to tell you. Please don’t be sad. I am ….dying.”
“The truth is we all are dying,” the post continues, as Simmons encourages his followers to follow a healthy diet, exercise and “tell the ones that you love that you love them.”
Whether the post was the announcement of an actual medical condition was initially unclear, but both manager Michael Catalano, and publicist Thomas Estey told Forbes on Monday that Simmons was simply posting an inspirational note to fans.
Fans responded to the note with words of encouragement, though some commenters clearly thought the post was an announcement of Simmons’ declining health.
Crucial Quote
“I’m happy to report Richard is healthy and happy. Purely an inspirational message,” Catalano told Forbes.
Key Background
Simmons, born Milton Teagle Simmons, rose to fame as an actor and fitness instructor in the 1970s. He led workout classes, opened gyms and released a “Sweatin’ to the Oldies” line of home aerobics videos that made him a household name. Simmons appeared as an actor and as himself on dozens of television series, hosted a satellite radio show, often corresponded with fans and continued to teach classes at his gym—Slimmons in Los Angeles—until an abrupt disappearance from the public eye in early 2014. His gym closed suddenly in 2016. Since then, conspiracy theories have run rampant and been met with the occasional denial from the star. The first and most prevalent rumor to circulate about the sudden change was that the star was being held hostage in his Hollywood Hills home by his housekeeper. Simmons denied the rumors in an audio-only interview on the “Today” show. The 2017 release of a podcast investigating his supposed disappearance, called “Missing Richard Simmons,” reignited the claims, which were called a “complete load of crap” by his representatives. Other unsubstantiated rumors have included that Simmons was undergoing a gender reassignment surgery—he unsuccessfully sued several publications for libel over those claims—and that he was forced to quit his fitness career because of a debilitating knee injury.
