Richard Simmons, Fitness Legend, Dead At 76

Richard Simmons, the exuberant fitness instructor who inspired many to get healthy, has died at age 76, according to TMZ. The outlet said that Simmons's housekeeper found him unresponsive on July 13, 2024, and called authorities. It looks like Simmons died of natural causes, according to TMZ, though the cause was still under investigation.

Simmons created a wide-ranging fitness empire as he sought to get people moving throughout his career, though he had become more reclusive in his later years. The "Sweatin' to the Oldies" creator still shared public messages to fans on his social media pages. On the day of his death, a post appeared on his account on X, formerly known as Twitter, that confused some fans. It was a reference to the song "Don't Rain on My Parade" from the musical "Funny Girl," of which Simmons was a fan — he told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel that it's what sparked his Barbra Streisand obsession. Some X users posited that the post wasn't the work of Simmons himself but someone he had hired to run his account. It's also possible that it was a scheduled post.

Simmons died just one day before his birthday, and he had previously divulged his plans to share more about his life with his fans. "The name of my biopic is ... Funny Boy. It starts with me selling praline candies in the French Quarter and how I developed my sense of humor and love of food," he tweeted in May 2024. He also used social media to keep fans updated about his health.

When Richard Simmons disappeared from the public eye, fans were alarmed. They also found one of his social media posts less than reassuring. In March 2024, he tweeted, "I have some news to tell you. Please don't be sad. I am ... dying. Oh I can see your faces now. The truth is we all are dying." He later apologized for the worrisome message, clarifying that he was fine but just wanted to remind his fans to make the most of each day they're alive.

Simmons also shared some information about his health with his fans amid the death scare that he inadvertently caused. He revealed that he had been diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma after noticing a strange spot on his face that wasn't going away. In two lengthy Facebook posts, he chronicled his experience, revealing that it took three trips to the doctor to remove all of the cancer cells from beneath his eye. However, he never suggested that his cancer had been life-threatening. 

Sadly, because fans have been wrong about Simmons' death before, they found it difficult to believe that the kind-hearted exercise icon is really gone. "Nooooo! Richard please don't let this be true!" read one tweet. "Please say it ain't so, Richard. Please," another person begged. Fans also flocked to his X account to express how much he was loved and appreciated. Remarked one admirer, "Thank you for all you did while you were here."