Richard Simmons Prepares Final Message to Fans Before Death at 76

Richard Simmons had a final message for his fans before his death at age 76.

“Richard worked very hard on his posts for you. He had many ideas and worked backwards and forwards… going back and forth on each one and making changes until he got it exactly how he wanted it before posting,” his team wrote on Facebook on Saturday, July 21. “As you know, on the weekends he would simply share a photo with a caption. He would always choose his photos and write his captions for the upcoming weekend on Friday.”

According to Simmons’ team members, they thought fans “would want to see” the video the fitness icon planned to share on July 14.

For his post scheduled for last Sunday, Simmons intended to share a portrait of himself wearing an astronaut uniform in front of a Photoshopped intergalactic background.

“Let me take you to the moon so we can gaze at the stars,” he intended to write, quoting the Frank Sinatra song. The message was signed “With love, Richard.”

Simmons was unable to release the video as planned because he passed away the day before, on July 13. According to his representatives at the time, Simmons was found dead in his Los Angeles home that morning.

The cause of death has not been confirmed and an investigation is ongoing. However, local law enforcement officials do not believe foul play was involved.

Simmons died shortly after turning 76, a milestone he celebrated on social media.

“Many of you have sent me birthday wishes on Facebook and other platforms,” he wrote on Facebook at the time. “I really appreciate it. I don’t know when your birthday is, but I wish you a happy birthday and good health!”

Before his death, the reclusive star had been diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma.

“I had a weird lump under my right eye. I had a tube of Neosporin that I put in morning and night… it was still there. It was time to call my dermatologist,” he recalled in a social media post in March. “I sat in his chair and he looked at it through a magnifying mirror. He told me he was going to have to scrape it off and put it under the microscope. Now I’m starting to get a little nervous.”

Simmons’ dermatologist later confirmed the fitness trainer’s diagnosis.

“I asked him what type of cancer it was and he said it was basal cell carcinoma. I told him to stop insulting me. He laughed,” Simmons joked. “‘You need to see an oncologist immediately. But now that you’re here, I suggest you put Botox on your forehead lines and smile and puff up your cheeks.’ I patted his hand and said, ‘Not today, doctor.’”

Simmons eventually underwent several surgeries to remove the cancerous tissue.