Susan Power She has experienced many changes in her life after rising to fame with her fitness infomercials.
After her first husband, Nico VillarrealHe left her for another woman in 1986, Powter went from 130 pounds to 260 pounds and turned to fitness to get by.
In the early ’90s, Powter rose to fame with his song «Stop the Insanity!». fitness infomercials and created a huge wellness empire, writing several books and creating her own talk show. The Susan Power Show.
However, after becoming embroiled in several lawsuits, Powter was forced to declare bankruptcy in 1995, leading her to escape the public eye and eventually run out of money in 2018.
«Try getting a job as a 60-year-old woman,» Powter said. People in October 2024, noting that he had been delivering Grubhub and Uber Eats for the past six years to make a living.
After two decades, Powter sheds light on his disappearance and bankruptcy through his new documentary, Stop the Madness: Finding Susan Powter. The film, produced by Jamie Lee Curtiswill be released in select theaters in November 2025.
Keep scrolling to learn more about Powter:
Susan Powter has been married twice and is the mother of 4 children.
Powter married Villarreal in 1982 and the couple welcomed sons Kiel and Damien before they ended up divorcing in 1988 following his affair with another woman. After her ex-husband’s affair, Powter turned to food to cope, which ultimately led her to join the fitness industry.
«I was in a fat coma. I was literally dying,» he told the newspaper. Chicago Grandstand in a 1993 interview. “I decided to make a change.”
After his separation from Villarreal, Powter married the musician Lincoln Apelandia in 1989. The duo broke up in 1995.
Almost a decade later, Powter came out as a lesbian in 2004 and adopted a third child, Gabriel.
Susan Powter rose to fame through her fitness infomercials
In 1990, Powter partnered with Dallas advertising rep. Rusty Robertson to create their “Stop the Madness!” infomercials, which included their health and wellness kit with exercise videos and recipes.
«I just got up and talked to the women,» he said. People in October 2024. «That’s what I did in the infomercial. It wasn’t rehearsed or scripted. And those women responded.»
Susan Powter had her own talk show and wrote several books
After the popularity of his infomercials, Powter opened his own gym and wrote several books, including the 1993 one. Stop the madness! and 1995 Food. Despite all his fame, Powter later admitted that he didn’t run his own company because it was a «50/50 deal.»
«They started producing my ‘I,'» he explained to People in October 2024. «And that happened when the money got here. Then it was like, ‘Oh, Suze, don’t say that. No, no. It’s too much. Oh, you’re shocking. Shocking.’ But that’s the same shock that got me there.»
In 1994, the fitness instructor began filming her own television show called The Susan Power Show – except that the control became too much for her.
«I worked very hard on that show. Filming three shows a day,» he told the outlet. «I did it with everything I had. But it was mortifying. They put pearls on me. Look at me, do I look like the pearl type? And I had nothing to say. All those segments, I can’t even watch them now.»
Susan Powter files for bankruptcy
After leaving The Susan Power Show contract and fighting several lawsuits to renegotiate its business contracts, Powter was forced to declare bankruptcy in 1995.
«There were nothing but lawsuits in the ’90s,» he said. People in an October 2024 interview. «Yes, there was money, but I never had $300 million in the bank account. I never made the money I made.»
Powter ended up leaving Hollywood with her three children to move to Seattle, where she rented a cabin and taught cooking and fitness classes.
Susan Powter lost all her money
Powter was living happily in Seattle before he ran out of all the money he earned in 2018 and couldn’t get a job. He ended up moving to Las Vegas to live in a complex where he started making deliveries for GrubHub and Uber Eats.
«It’s very difficult. It’s terribly shocking. If sadness could kill you, I would be dead,» Powter said. People in October 2024, noting that after Curtis and the filmmaker approached her Zeberias Newman about making a documentary, inspired her to share her story through her 2024 memoir, And then Em died…: Stop the madness!. «I haven’t had any money for 25 years. I’m not looking for a lavish, lavish life.»
Powter shared that he just wants to «talk to the world» and «write books.»
«I want insurance, I want a credit card, I want to pay my bills,» he shared with the outlet. «I want a dentist. But if that happens, it will be well managed. It will be for my children and me. I want to give back to my children what should have been theirs.»
