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Richard Simmons’ longtime housekeeper and companion Teresa Reveles is speaking out about the late fitness guru’s final years.
In a candid conversation – her first broadcast interview – Reveles told the “Today” show about the unique nature of their relationship, and claimed that he was incredibly happy in the years before his death on July 13, 2024.
She began working for Simmons decades ago, in 1988, and while some rumors have claimed that she was to blame for his disappearance from the spotlight in his later years, she denied it. When host Liz Kreutz asked about speculation that she’d “kidnapped” him, she laughed and replied, “No, I think he kidnapped me!”
RICHARD SIMMONS SAW ONLY ‘BEAUTIFUL BRIGHT RAINBOWS’ IN THE FINAL WEEKS BEFORE HIS DEATH
Richard Simmons’ longtime housekeeper, Teresa Reveles, photographed in 2017. (All Access / MEGA)
While she said their relationship wasn’t sexual, she did admit they were very close.
“He (fell) in love with me right away, that he says, ‘No, you’re never going to leave me,’” she explained. She said that to her, he was “like a brother … like my father, my friend, my boyfriend, my everything.”
Reveles insisted that she and Simmons weren’t romantic partners, and said that if anyone was confused by the unconventional relationship she shared with him, “It’s their problem. We were very happy, and the last ten years was the most happy years.”
When asked about Simmons’ sexual orientation, which he never publicly disclosed, she refused to answer, but when she was asked if she ever knew about any romantic partners he had, she said, “Me. He never love anybody like me.”
Richard Simmons died on July 13, 2024. He was 76. (Harry Langdon/Getty Images)
She added, “Well, he wasn’t my lover, not sexually, but he kissed me all the time.”
As for how secluded Simmons became in the years leading up to his death, she said, “He was not happy that he was getting old, OK? He says, ‘No, I want people to remember me the way I was.’ You know … full of life.”
Reveles was the one who found Simmons after he died. She said that was a “crazy, sad day,” but that he had been “very, very happy.”
“I never saw Richard, in 36 years, unhappy, or mean, or upset,” she said.
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Richard Simmons attends the 87th annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade on November 28, 2013, in New York City. (Scott Roth/FilmMagic)
In a message to Fox News Digital, Tom Estey, Simmons’ longtime friend, said, “Let’s CELEBRATE Richard – the human being. It’s nearly his Birthday. I worked with him for 30 plus years, and more importantly, we were close friends even longer. I choose to celebrate these milestones.”
On July 11, 2024, Simmons suffered a fall and spent the following day in bed. On the morning of July 13, Simmons was found unresponsive on his bedroom floor. Authorities were called, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
The fitness instructor and TV icon died as a result of blunt traumatic injuries, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office announced two months later. The 76-year-old’s manner of death was ruled as an accident.
Arteriosclerotic cardiovascular was listed as a contributing factor.
Reveles said that Simmons was “very happy” in the years before his death. (Bobby Bank/WireImage)
At the time, Reveles told People, “When I saw him, he looked peaceful.”
She said that when she found him, his hands were balled into fists, and explained, “That’s why I know it was a heart attack. I had a heart attack a few years ago, and my hands did the same.”
The day before he died, Reveles said Simmons’ leg was hurting from a fall the previous day. Simmons passed away one day after his birthday, July 12.
She told him, “Let’s go to the hospital. Maybe you broke your leg.” Simmons protested, “No, Teresa, not on my birthday. Why [don’t we] wait, and we do it in the morning?”
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The LAPD told Fox News Digital after Simmons’ death that there was no suspicion of foul play. (Getty Images)
“But in the morning, it was too late,” Reveles said.
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Los Angeles Police Department officials confirmed to Fox News Digital at the time that there was “no foul play” suspected in his death.
Fox News Digital’s Stephanie Nolasco and Tracy Wright contributed to this report.