Fitness Guru Richard Simmons Has Been Missing Since 2014

Despite having an active social media account, many believe Richard Simmons is missing. The fitness star who opened 72 gyms before he was 35, has been supposedly missing since February 15th, 2014.

It was on this date that Simmons stopped teaching his classes at his L.A. studio and stopped returning phone calls and emails from his friends or fans.

So where is he?

Dan Taberski, a guy who attended Simmon’s classes in L.A. back in 2012, formed a friendship with the trainer and were even discussing doing a documentary on his life. After he went missing Taberski launched a podcast called “Missing Richard Simmons.” The podcast is now on its sixth episode and it has reached #1 on the charts.

It chronicles Taberski’s search for Simmons and visits the trainer’s friends and family for answers. Fans and friends are worried and want to know why Simmons just suddenly withdrew from the spotlight.

“[Simmons] changed fitness forever. Before he came on the scene, fitness and aerobics was for people who had hard bodies and just wanted to get a little harder,” Taberski said while speaking to Katie Couric. “He remembered because he was overweight himself once that it’s really about the people who live in America, regular people.”

As for his social media still being active, Taberski said. “A lot of celebrities have people who manage their social media, but in the context of what’s going on, it adds to the mystery that nobody is alleviating.”

Taberski has discussed two theories on why Simmons may have backed away from people. According to Taberski, Simmons was fighting a knee problem that may have taken the trainer out for good from his fitness routine. His dog Hattie also died at 17, and was the last of Simmons’ eight Dalmatians. Simmons was devastated by the loss.

Taberski also thinks perhaps Richard’s empathy for so many people may have drained him.

“He would wake up at 4 in the morning and reach out to 30, 40, 50 people with phone calls and emails,” Taberski explained. “It was sustained relationships that lasted years, sometimes decades.”

He explained that his podcast means more than one would think. “This is my grand gesture to Richard. I want him to see that we don’t see him as a one-dimensional person, that we understand how important he was, and that he’s loved.”