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Richard Simmons Said “I Know People Miss Me” in Emotional Final Interview 2 Days Before His Death: “I Was Always Embroidered With Caring For People”

Fitness guru Richard Simmons spoke to PEOPLE in an emotional interview just days before he died on July 13. He was 76.

when he graduated high school in 1966), the fitness showman first found fame in Los Angeles, where he opened Ruffage and the Anatomy Asylum — a combination health-food eatery and exercise studio in 1974. With his signature crown of curly hair, rhinestone-covered tank tops, dolphin shorts and tube socks, Simmons was a frenetic, high-kicking, arm-waving icon — and a sparkling beacon of hope for his millions of fans. Jane Fonda ’s studio was about three miles away from me, and I've always been a fan— so I dressed up one day with a brown wig, a mustache, and glasses and a gray sweatshirt and heather-gray pants — and I went to her class.

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