A Look Into Why Richard Simmons Never Married: ‘I Wanted to Be a Little Bit of a Loner’
One of the people Simmons was rumored to be in a relationship with caused a lot of family drama
Between his positive attitude, incredible dance skills, motivating weight-loss techniques and yummy recipes, it makes total sense why the late Richard Simmons was a huge hit with women all over the country. And yet, somehow the fitness mogul was never in a public relationship with a man or woman. We discover some of the potential reasons why that was below.
Who was Richard Simmons?
Simmons was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, on July 12, 1948, and moved to Los Angeles, California, in the 1970s. From there, he went on to open a grocery store and fitness studio, Slimmons—both of which have since closed down. He also hosted several different weight loss cruises over the years.
“While Slimmons may be closing, Richard Simmons has made an indelible mark on the lives of millions through his classes there and around the world,” Simmons’ manager said in 2016. “While he is taking time for himself right now, his tenets of kindness, encouragement and well-being will endure.”
Following the closure of his studio, Simmons then left the public eye and only interacted with his fans through Facebook.
“I’ve taught, like, thousands and thousands of classes and, you know, right now I just want to sort of just take care of me,” the late fitness mogul said in 2015. “I just really don’t want to do anything. I just don’t want to be traveling anymore. It certainly has taken its toll on me.”
A lot of people believe that Simmons’ willingness to step out of the spotlight came after he was diagnosed with skin cancer in March 2024.
“There was this strange looking bump under my right eye. I had a tube of Neosporin, which I would put on in the morning and the evening….it was still there. It was time to call my dermatologist,” Simmons wrote on Facebook. “I sat in his chair and he looked at it through a magnifying mirror. He told me he would have to scrape it and put it under the microscope. Now I am getting a little bit nervous. He comes back about 20 minutes later and says the C word. You have cancer. I asked him what kind of cancer and he said Basal Cell Carcinoma. I told him to stop calling me dirty names. He laughed.”
“‘You have to go to a cancer doctor right away. But now that you are here, I suggest you put some Botox in your forehead lines and your smile lines and let’s pump up those cheeks of yours…’ I patted him on his hand and said, ‘Not today, doctor.’”
His cancer did not play a part in his death.
The death of Richard Simmons
Simmons died on June 13, 2024, at age 76, from “complications from recent falls and heart disease as a contributing factor,” according to his brother Lenny.
The late fitness mogul’s brother also revealed that Simmons was buried in “his tank top and shorts underneath his clothes just in case God’s final plan for him is to get all the angels and saints in Heaven into shape. Richard Simmons will forever be ‘Sweating with the Holies.’”
Simmons is buried at the St. Louis Cathedral in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Why did Richard Simmons never marry?
Throughout his entire career, Simmons never entered into a public relationship with anyone, causing people to believe that he was either gay, asexual or secretly married to someone and just didn’t want the world to know.
Simmons himself never commented on his sexual preference, but he did say that partner or no partner, he was never lonely.
“Teresa Reveles [his former housekeeper] has been with me for 30 years. It’s almost like we’re a married couple,” Simmons said. “No one should be worried about me. The people that surround me are wonderful people who take great care of me.”
There was a lot of speculation after Simmons left the public eye that Reveles, his brother and his manager were holding him hostage in his own home and abusing him for his money. Simmons denied these claims, though, saying, “No one is holding me in my house as a hostage.”
“For all the people that were worrying about me, I want to tell them that I love them with my whole heart and soul and that not to worry, Richard’s fine,” he continued.“I just sort of wanted to be a little bit of a loner for a little while.”
Following that rumor, Reveles and Simmons still continued to confide in one another, with the former housekeeper telling PEOPLE, “Everything happened the way he wanted.”
“He wanted to die first; he went first. And you know what? I’m very happy because Richard was really, very happy. He died very happy.”
She also revealed that Simmons “took me in, all those years ago. And he became like my father,” seemingly killing all the online speculation that she was in fact, his lover and not just a housekeeper.
“He loved me before I loved him. He gave me beautiful jewelry. Every time he gave me something, in the early years, I was thinking, ‘He doesn’t know me! Why did he do this? Why did he do that?” She also shared that just days before his death, Simmons gifted her a diamond pin.
“Why?” Reveles recalled asking him. “Our anniversary is not for a few weeks. It’s almost here.”
“Because I want to do it now. You know, Teresa, almost doesn’t count.”
Following his death, Reveles entered a very large legal battle with Simmons’ family, with the former housekeeper claiming that the family pressured her to relinquish her role as a co-trustee of Simmons’ estate.
This then left Simmons’ family in charge of the late fitness star’s money and property, even though they “had not seen each other in person for more than six years prior to Richard’s death,” according to Reveles.
Simmons’ family has since called her insensitive and said in a statement that “Richard’s message was always one of joy and positivity. He would be heartbroken to learn of Teresa’s greed and insulted that she would diminish their three decades of supposed friendship in such a public way.”
As of publication, it remains unclear what Reveles is doing now—although it was reported in September 2024 that she was still living in her former employer’s house—despite the dispute over the estate.
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