Richard Simmons Was on ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Wish List

Richard Simmons was on an ABC executive’s wish list for “Dancing With the Stars.”

On July 13, 2024, the beloved fitness expert died one day after his 76^th birthday, according to TMZ. The cause of death for Simmons, who fell in his home on his birthday but did not seek medical treatment, is unknown and is currently under investigation, People magazine reported.

Simmons had several ties to “Dancing With the Stars.” ABC programming executive Robert Mills once told The Hollywood Reporter that the popular fitness personality was his “ultimate get” for the cast of the celebrity dancing show.

“The get of gets is Richard Simmons,” Mills said in 2017. “He’s somebody I’d just love to hug. This is his formal offer. I hope he reads it. Come on, Richard. You have carte blanche,” Mills said at the time.

Richards Simmons Made a Memorable Appearance on ‘Dancing With the Stars’

ABC/DailymotionRichard Simmons worked with Chaz Bono and Chelsie Hightower on DWTS.

In 2011, Simmons was a guest “coach” on DWTS season 13. He turned up to help train contestant Chaz Bono for his paso doble with pro dancer Chelsie Hightower. In a video posted by Dailymotion, Simmons is seen surprising Bono with boxing gloves in anticipation of the duo’s “Rocky” themed dance.

After Hightower says she contacted an “old friend” to help Bono with strength training, she explains, “I brought Chaz here because I can only train him so far. He needs some extra training.”

“It’s hard work!” Simmons adds, before pointing to his gold workout outfit. ‘Look at me, I borrowed this from the Kardashian!”

Simmons is then seen training Bono as the “Rocky” movie song “Eye of the Tiger” plays.

Simmons posted to Twitter to thank fans for their “kind words” about his cameo on DWTS. “It was so much fun to tape,” he wrote.

Other “Dancing With the Stars” celebs and pros had fun moments with Simmons.  In 2007, pro dancer Derek Hough and his celebrity partner Jennie Garth received a surprise visit from Simmons during rehearsals. The “Sweatin’ to the Oldies” guru ultimately serenaded Hough with an impromptu song about his “perfect hair.”

Following Simmons’ death, Hough posted a video of his surprise visit and revealed that the exercise guru boosted his confidence during his very first season as a pro dancer on “Dancing with the Stars.”

In February 2013, Simmons also had a run-in with pro dancer Maksim Chmerkovskiy when they both appeared on “Access Hollywood.”  He posted a photo of his meetup with the Ukrainian American pro dancer.

“We look so much alike that I could be his twin!” Simmons joked about Chmerkovskiy. “I asked him out to dinner so that I could teach him some new dancing moves. Lol.”

‘Dancing with the Stars’ Pro Dancer Kym Johnson Herjavec Took Over Richard Simmons’ Former Fitness Studio

One of Simmons’ biggest DWTS ties is to his former fitness studio. In 2016, he closed his iconic Los Angeles-area exercise studio, Slimmon Studio, which has been open since 1974, per ABCNews.  The Slimmons Studio was located at 9306 Civic Center Dr, Beverly Hills, California. The shutdown came as Simmons made the decision to slow down from public life.

At the time, Simmons released a statement to Entertainment Tonight to thank fans for their support for over 40 years. The outlet noted that Simmons had been out of the public eye for three years prior to his studio’s shutdown.

In 2017, DWTS pro dancer Kym Johson Herjavec revealed plans to take over Simmons studio. The two-time mirrorball champion opened her fitness and dance studio, The BOD, in the space, per Us Weekly. Herjavec told the outlet that she had gone to a class at Slimmons years earlier and that Simmons’ energy “was just so infectious.” “He just radiated positivity,” she said.

Herjavec added that Simmons was a “huge inspiration” for her own fitness business. “I want to continue doing the same thing he did,” she shared. “It’s about being able to come to a place where you feel safe and you feel good about yourself being there.”

Simmons reacted to Herjavec’s takeover of his studio, telling ET in 2017, “I have not been to the studio since it closed, but I wish Kym all the best of everything in that space.”

The Bod no longer appears to be in business.