Remembering fitness guru Richard Simmons
Fitness guru Richard Simmons has died at the age of 76, the day after his birthday.
Fox – LA
Richard Simmons’ longtime housekeeper has spoken out about the pair’s close relationship following the fitness celebrity’s death.
Teresa Reveles, who worked as Simmons’ house manager for 35 years, reflected on her close friendship with Simmons in an interview with People magazine published Monday.
“Richard adopted me many years ago and he became like a father to me. He loved me before I loved him,” Rebeles told the magazine. “He gave me beautiful jewelry. In the beginning, every time he gave me something I was like, ‘He doesn’t know me! Why did he do this? Why did he do that?'”
Simmons died at her Hollywood home on July 13. Her publicist, Tom Esty, said she had “no idea” about the cause of death.
Richard Simmons died: The fitness pioneer is 76 years old
Reveles said she was introduced to Simmons in 1986 through an agency.
“When I got here, Richard asked me, ‘Where are your clothes? Where is your big suitcase?’ I said, ‘I’m only bringing a small suitcase because I’m only going to try for two weeks. If you don’t like me or don’t like my cooking, I can’t work,'” Rebeles recalled, to which Simmons responded, “Teresa, come on in. You’re never leaving. We’re going to be together until the day I die.”
She added, “And guess what? His dream came true. And somehow he knew it.”
Richard Simmons’ housekeeper recalls fall before fitness star’s death
Simmons’ death came one day after what would have been the fitness icon’s 76th birthday.Number birthday.
Reveles told People magazine that Simmons had fallen two days before his death, and then told her on the morning of his birthday that his “legs were really hurting.” Reveles urged him to go to the hospital, but the “Sweatin’ to the Oldies” star opted to wait until the next morning.
Reveles said she found Simmons in his bedroom after he died. The cause of death has not been confirmed, but she claimed Simmons died of a heart attack.
“When I saw him, he seemed calm,” Reveles said, noting that Simmons’ hands were clenched into fists, “so I knew it was a heart attack. I had a heart attack a few years ago and my hands were clenched into fists the same way.”
“Rebeles personally feels that as a result of his previous experiences and what he witnessed firsthand that morning, Simmons suffered a data heart attack,” a spokesperson for Simmons said in a statement to USA Today on Monday.
Teresa Rebeles reveals why Richard Simmons stepped away from the spotlight
Reveles also reflected on Simmons’ disappearance from public view in the latter years of his life, and addressed speculation that he may have been responsible for Simmons’s disappearance as a celebrity.
“They said crazy things, like I locked him in the house, but that was never true,” Reveles said.
Reveles said Simmons wanted out of the spotlight due to health problems and insecurities about her appearance. Simmons suffered from knee pain and “thought it made her look old,” Reveles said.
“He said, ‘I want to be Richard. If I can’t be Richard…’ Celebrities say, ‘If I can’t be myself, then I have to stop working,’ and that’s why he did it.”
Richard Simmons said: The fitness celebrity’s staff shared social media posts he wrote before his death
Reveles said Simmons had been in good spirits in the days before her death, had kept in touch with fans by phone and email and was writing a Broadway musical about her life.
“Everything happened just the way he wanted it,” Reveles said. “He wanted to die first. He did. And guess what? I’m very happy because Richard was very happy indeed. He died very happy.”
Contributors: Amanda Lee Myers and Mike Snyder, USA TODAY
