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Richard Simmons: 'I am not kidnapped'

Simmons: "I am not kidnapped" Don't fret; Richard Simmons is OK! So where has he been since his last public appearance at Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 2013?

Simmons: "I am not kidnapped"

Don't fret; Richard Simmons is OK!

So where has he been since his last public appearance at Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 2013?

"I am not kidnapped," the fitness advocate told Entertainment Tonight in reaction to a theory floated by the New York Daily News.

Former Simmons assistant Mauro Oliveira told ABC News he believed the exercise dude's housemaid controls his mind with magic. He said members of Simmons' staff were holding him while they take all his money.

"I am just in my house right now." (But did anyone actually verify he was there - and not under duress?)

The 67-year-old New Orleans native is flattered so many of us have agonized about his well-being.

"I love all the people who worry about me," he said. "But it was time for me to take some time to be by myself. For the last 40 years, I have been traveling, teaching classes, and I had a knee injury. . . . I have really just been taking it easy, staying at home, working out in my gym and doing the things I haven't done in a very long time."

Ben Affleck: It's OK. Really!

Don't weep for Ben Affleck. He's doing just fine since the breakup of his 10-year marriage to Jennifer Garner. Affleck spoke with the New York Times a few days after Vanity Fair posted its interview with Garner.

"Jen's great. She's a great person," said Affleck. But she shared details about their lives together.

"She's allowed to talk about it," he said. Garner called Affleck the "love of my life," and said their breakup "hurts me so much."

The duo have three kids, Violet, 10; Seraphina, 7; and Sam, 4.

Emerson committed suicide

The Los Angeles County coroner has ruled Keith Emerson's death on Friday a suicide.

The 71-year-old progressive rock icon shot himself with a .38 revolver, said rep Ed Winter. He was found by his longtime companion, Mari Kawaguchi, 52.

The autopsy revealed the ELP cofounder suffered from heart disease as well as depression.

Cartoon 'Zootopia' a winner

Disney's Zootopia was at No. 1 on the box office chart for a second weekend in a row, with a gross of $50 mil, according to studio estimates. J.J. Abrams' 10 Cloverfield Lane opened at No. 2 with $25.2 mil, and Deadpool was in third place with $10.8 mil. Sacha Baron Cohen's The Brothers Grimsby opened at No. 7 with a sad $3.2 mil.

A great American holiday

Yesterday was National Pi Day, a holiday recognized by the House of Representatives. Enjoy: 3.1415926535897932384626433832795028841971693993751058209749445923078164062862089986280348253421170679.

tirdad@phillynews.com 215-854-2736