More than a month after he was found dead in his Los Angeles home, Richard Simmons' cause of death has been revealed. The fitness guru's death was accidental, with contributing factors including "complications from recent falls" and heart disease, the family's spokesperson told People and ABC News after Simmons' brother, Lenny, received a call from the Los Angeles Coroner's office. Beyond the medication Simmons was prescribed, the toxicology report was also negative, the statement said.
Simmons' longtime housekeeper found him dead on July 13, one day after his 76th birthday. Though authorities did not suspect foul play, his cause of death had originally been deferred pending an investigation and necessary additional testing, and the Los Angeles Police Department told Scripps News it couldn't officially close the case until it had the coroner's office's final determination. RELATED STORY | Fitness icon and television personality Richard Simmons dead at 76 Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, Simmons spent the first 18 years of his life in the French Quarter with his dancer mom, emcee father and his brother, with whom he shared a room, the Historic New Orleans Collection museum wrote in a story of his life.
In 1974, he opened a workout studio in Beverly Hills, California, that he called Slimmons, which catered to people who might have felt more shy working out around people who were already fit, according to one account on IMDB . Simmons went on to become a household name, selling s.