Richard Simmons’s team reveal heartbreaking final post fitness guru planned to share before his death
‘This makes me want to cry’ wrote one fan
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Richard Simmons’s team have revealed the final post the fitness guru planned to share before his death.
The TV personality – who rose to fame for his popular series of aerobic videos, Sweatin’ to the Oldies – died at his home in Los Angeles, just one day after his 76th birthday, on Saturday (13 July).
He was pronounced dead at the scene after his housekeeper contacted police at around 10am, according to TMZ. Simmons’ cause of death is not immediately known, and is currently under investigation.
“Richard worked very hard on his posts for you,” Simmons’s team shared in a post on X/Twitter on Saturday (21 July).
“He had many ideas and would work ahead… going back to each one making changes until he had it just like he wanted before posting.”
The fitness star was heavily involved in his social media account and had selected an image for his final post as well as the caption, according to his team.
“As you know, on the weekends, he would just share a photo with a caption. He always chose his photos and wrote his captions for the upcoming weekend by Friday,” the team continued.
“So we have the post Richard planned to share with you last Sunday. We thought you’d want to see it.”
Alongside a picture of Simmons’ in an astronaut suit, his characteristic red hair completely grey, there was a related caption.
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days
New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days
New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled
“Let me fly you to the moon so we can gaze among the stars. Love, Richard,” the post read.
Fans were left emotional as they wrote, “This makes me want to cry”.
Another added, “See you in the stars Richard”, alongside a sad face.
“Thank you for posting this!” wrote one person on X/Twitter. “It will be nice to have a memory of him in his later years. Such a beautiful soul, inside and out.”
The news comes after it was revealed that Simmons had been diagnosed with cancer in March. The star had just celebrated his birthday on Friday (12 July) and thanked fans for their support.
“Thank you… I never got so many messages about my birthday in my life! I am sitting here writing emails. Have a most beautiful rest of your Friday,” the post read. “Love, Richard.”
In his final interview, Simmons spoke about his fans, saying he missed them and told them, “I’m a human being just like you”.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments