Fitness Guru Richard Simmons Passes Away at 76

NEW YORK (AP) — Richard Simmons, the exuberant and colorful fitness guru famous for his energetic personality and flamboyant workout attire, passed away on Saturday. He had just turned 76 on Friday.

Los Angeles police and fire departments reported responding to a residence in Los Angeles where a man was declared deceased from natural causes. Although they did not release a name, the Associated Press was able to identify Simmons through public records based on the address and age provided.

TMZ was the first to report the news of his passing, with other outlets subsequently confirming it through unnamed representatives of Simmons.

In March 2024, Simmons had disclosed a skin diagnosis, leading to increased public speculation about his health as he became less publicly visible in recent years.

Simmons had a profound impact on the fitness industry. Once an overweight teenager weighing 268 pounds, he shared his weight-loss journey as the host of the Emmy-winning daytime show “The Richard Simmons Show.” He authored best-selling books and created the diet plan Deal-A-Meal. His exercise studios and popular workout videos, especially the “Sweatin’ to the Oldies” series, were widely celebrated.

“My food plan and diet are just two words — common sense. With a dash of good humor,” he told The Associated Press in 1982. “I want to help people and make the world a healthier, happy place.”

Simmons used mass communication effectively to promote his message, even as he sometimes became the target of jokes for his extroverted style and vivid costumes. He appeared on numerous TV shows hosted by personalities like Merv Griffin, Mike Douglas, and Phil Donahue. However, he faced mockery from David Letterman and Howard Stern, who often pranked and teased him to the point of tears. He was parodied in Neil Simon’s Broadway play “The Goodbye Girl” in 1993 and by Eddie Murphy in “The Nutty Professor,” where Murphy dressed up as Simmons.

When asked if he thought his silliness motivated people, Simmons responded, “I think there’s a time to be serious and a time to be silly. It’s knowing when to do it. I try to have a nice combination. Being silly cures depression. It catches people off guard and makes them think. But in between that silliness is a lot of seriousness that makes sense. It’s a different kind of training.”

At its peak, Simmons’ daytime show was broadcast on 200 stations across America and internationally in countries including Australia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Japan, and South America. His first book, “Never Say Diet,” became a best-seller.

Simmons was known for providing support to the severely obese, including Rosalie Bradford, once the world’s heaviest woman, and Michael Hebranko, who credited Simmons with helping him lose 700 pounds. Unlike typical fitness videos, Simmons featured real people in them to make fitness goals appear more attainable.

Throughout his career, Simmons was a vocal critic of fad diets, advocating for balanced eating habits and regular exercise. “There’ll always be some weird thing about eating four grapes before you go to bed, or drinking a special tea, or buying this little bean from El Salvador,” he told the AP in 2005, amid the Atkins diet craze. “If you watch your portions and you have a good attitude and you work out every day you’ll live longer, feel better and look terrific.”

Simmons, originally named Milton, was born in New Orleans. Due to childhood teasing and feeling overshadowed by his older brother, he adopted the name Richard at around age 10. Schoolmates’ taunts led him to eat excessively, causing his weight to balloon to nearly 200 pounds.

Simmons’ mother, a fan of exercise guru Jack LaLanne, couldn’t inspire young Richard. Instead, he found solace in food and entertainment. His journey to Italy as a foreign exchange student saw him in peanut butter commercials and even had him appear in Federico Fellini’s “Fellini Satyricon.”

His life took a turn after receiving an anonymous letter warning him about the dangers of his weight. This triggered a drastic but unhealthy diet which he later adjusted to a more balanced approach.

In later years, when he remained out of the public eye, rumors swirled that he was being held captive. However, Simmons denied these claims in interviews with “Entertainment Tonight” and the “Today” show, stating he was simply enjoying time alone. Filmmaker Dan Taberski launched a podcast in 2017 titled “Missing Richard Simmons” to explore his sudden withdrawal from public view.

By 2022, Simmons finally broke his six-year silence, with his spokesperson revealing to The New York Post that he was “living the life he has chosen.”

Associated Press writers Stefanie Dazio and Andrew Dalton contributed from Los Angeles.

Source: Associated Press, TMZ, The New York Post