Richard Simmons candidly opened up about life, loss and grief in an extensive interview just days before his shocking death at age 76.
“How do you deal with loss? It takes a toll on your heart,” Simmons shared in an interview with People published on Monday, July 15. “Some shed many tears, others stare at the sky. It’s so hard to say goodbye. Here is what I know when it’s time for us to go, beautiful angels will greet us with a smile and a hello.”
The fitness guru, who famously retreated from the public eye in 2014, added that while he knows people “miss” him, he “misses them too.”
Despite being “in disguise,” Simmons noted that he still reaches fans through phone calls and emails.
“When I decided to retire, it was because my body told me I needed to retire,” he explained to the outlet. “I have spent time just reflecting on my life. All of the books I wrote, the videos. I never was like, ‘Oh look what I’ve done.’ My thing was, ‘Oh, look how many people I helped.’”
Simmons died in his Los Angeles home on Saturday, July 13, just two days after his 76th birthday. He was pronounced dead on the scene by authorities and his death is believed to be from natural causes.
He even shared a birthday message and sent gratitude to his fans on Facebook.
Richard Simmons. Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic
“So many of you have sent me birthday wishes on my Facebook and other platforms,” he shared. “I really appreciate that. I don’t know when your birthday is but I wish you a happy and healthy birthday!”
In March, Simmons was diagnosed with “scary” basal cell carcinoma and had it removed from his body earlier this year.
Hollywood mourned many celebrities in 2024. Speed Racer star Christian Oliver (born Christian Klepser) died at the age of 51 during a fatal plane crash on January 5. Oliver was traveling home from a Caribbean vacation with his two daughters — Madita and Annik, whom he shared with wife Jessica Klepser — on January 4. […]
“[The skin cancer] never came back. So many people have cancer,” he told People. “I call them, I sing to them. ‘You’re gonna get through this. You just have to believe that.’”
Of his legacy, the Never Say Diet author admitted that he doesn’t “hear the word legend” or “the word icon.”
“I never lived a celebrity life. I never thought of myself as a celebrity. People don’t know this, I’m really a shy person and a little bit of an introvert. But when that curtain goes up that’s a different story. I’m there to make people happy,” he confessed.