The cause into the sudden death of beloved fitness guru Richard Simmons is currently being investigated, after he was found dead at his home just one day following his 76th birthday.
The Los Angeles Police Department confirmed to People that while "no foul play" was suspected, Simmons' cause of death has been deferred by the Medical Examiner’s Office, which means that an investigation and additional testing are required. However, an official determination into the cause of death could take up to three months.
Simmons' death was reported after authorities responded to a call from his housekeeper on Saturday morning and pronounced him dead at the scene. According to TMZ, Simmons had apparently fallen in a bathroom at his home, though it's presently unclear whether that's where he was found by the housekeeper.
Though authorities are reportedly investigating his passing as a natural death, the timing is undoubtedly strange. After retreating from the public eye over a decade ago, Simmons had given an interview to People just two days before his death, telling the publication that he was "grateful" to get to live another day, and even hinting that he was planning a comeback.
"I never lived a celebrity life. I never thought of myself as a celebrity," he said, in that would be his final interview. "People don't know this, I'm really a shy person and a little bit of an introvert. But when that curtain goes up that's a different story. I'm there to make people happy."
"But the accolades I get from emails. I mean, today most probably, we'll answer over 100 emails," Simmons continued. "And they'll say, 'I'm your No. 1 fan.' And I just write back, and I say, you know, 'Don't say that because I'm a human being just like you. And I know that you do good things, too.'"
Back in March, less than four months before his death, Simmons admitted in a Facebook post that he had been diagnosed with skin cancer, but that his surgeon had managed to remove all of the cancer cells from his face. It's unclear whether he had still been in remission when he died.
