Hollywood Exclusive by Marilyn Beck & Stacy Jenel Smith

Fitness guru Richard Simmons reports he has 12 appointments set up this week with prospective buyers of his in-the-works reality show.

"That's 12 possible apostles to preach this to," says the preternaturally buoyant personality. And we can tell you, he's definitely got his gospel of weight loss all primed and ready to go.

"You know what, if we don't get a handle on this weight thing, it's going to be worse than a major earthquake in terms of stress, financial woes and medical problems," he says. "I call people every day who are afraid to exercise. As you get more overweight, more fears set in. I'm just trying to get people to try again. One more try. All the people who've given up, give it one more try. Give it to me. Let me try to turn this around for you."

Simmons is not a big fan of weight-loss reality series on the air now. "Shows where contestants lose enormous amounts of weight each week send the wrong message to America. Then you have people feeling like failures because they don't lose weight as fast," believes the 62-year-old, who has devoted the better part of four decades to his quest to help people get into healthy shape — including books, videos, fitness classes, teaching and speaking engagements, 200 days of traveling per year and lots of non-televised visits to work with morbidly obese and otherwise infirm individuals.

"Now more than ever, people want weight loss to be fast. More human beings are getting their stomachs cut into smaller pouches or lap-banding it. And I get hundreds of letters saying, 'It didn't work.' It's not like it's foolproof. What's the big hurry?

"Losing weight is not just about getting to a number. It's about liking yourself and respecting yourself," he goes on. "You can lose a great deal of weight, and not starve and not over-exercise."

And have fun doing it, he stresses.

"We've forgotten to have fun. Where's the clown?"

He says he was inspired all over again by attending the memorial of his pal of 30 years, Jack LaLanne — and wants to stay in as great a shape as the fitness pioneer was well into his 90s.

Simmons also says he sent out some 50,000 questionnaires in an effort to get a handle on people's feelings about being overweight and what to do about it in the current climate.

That work informed the show he wants to get in front of viewers' eyes. It would feature the goings-on at his Beverly Hills Slimmons flagship, where classes have a spectrum of all shapes, sizes, colors and ages, and of course, they have fun.

FROM THE INSIDE LOOKING OUT: Although Melissa Rivers' son, Cooper, is a prominent part of the reality show she does with mom Joan Rivers, WE's "Joan Knows Best?", she's not enthusiastic about the 10-year-old making performing a way of life.

Asked whether she thinks Cooper will go into show business, Melissa says, "I hope not."

Why not?

"It's a business of endless rejection no matter what level you're at. People just don't understand that. As my mother would say, 'Just remember, at the height of her career, it still took Barbra Streisand seven years to get "Yentl" made.' There's always rejection."

Still, "If that's what he wants to do, that's what he wants to do."

Surely, the younger Rivers has developed a thick skin after so many years of working in the business with Joan.

"Oh, you never do," she says. "When I'm in a real self-loathing mode, then I read what people say about me. But I try to avoid it. You have to love what you do and keep blinders on, and don't look from side to side. "

CROSS-POLLINATING: Mark Wahlberg, who's done right well as a TV producer with "Entourage," "Boardwalk Empire" and "In Treatment," (not to mention big-screen fare such as "The Fighter") has another series project in the works, this one for CBS, called "Home Game." It's about an NFL pro who retires after 12 years of gridiron glory, then has to adjust to a "normal" life at home — complete with a teenage daughter he doesn't understand and a wife he quickly begins to drive crazy.

And with Julianne Moore getting ready to portray Sarah Palin in HBO's adaptation of "Game Change," casting is under way for all those famous faces that fill out the Mark Halperin-John Heilemann expose about the 2008 election. They have their work cut out. Roles include Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and John McCain, to name three.

To find out more about Marilyn Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith and read their past columns, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com. COPYRIGHT 2011 MARILYN BECK AND STACY JENEL SMITH

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