Dennis Haskins, Principal Belding in ‘Saved By The Bell,’ dies at 75
(ABC NEWS)– Dennis Haskins, who is best known for his role on the hit sitcom “Saved By The Bell,” has died at 75, his agent confirmed to ABC News on Monday.
Dennis Haskins who played Principal Belding on ‘Saved By The Bell,’ dies at 75 (Photo: AP)
“It’s a tragic loss. Everyone loved Mr. Belding and those of us who got to know Dennis, loved him even more. He was a great person, and he loved, I mean absolutely LOVED his fans. He always had time for them, no matter what,” his agent Jay Schachter said.
Haskins’ cause of death has not been released.
He played Principal Richard Belding on three separate shows. First in the Disney Channel show “Good Morning, Miss Bliss” in 1989, which was later recreated into NBC’s “Saved By The Bell.”
He starred on “Saved By The Bell” through the show’s four-season run, from 1989 to 1993 and later reprised the role for “Saved by the Bell: The New Class,” which ran for seven seasons from 1993 to 2000.
“Saved By The Bell” is among the defining sitcoms of the ’90s, following a group of high school students as they navigate adolescence. Fans of the show will remember Principal Belding’s catchphrase “Hey, hey, hey, what is going on here?”
The last time Haskins played the famed principal was in 2015 when the cast — Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Elizabeth Berkley, Mario Lopez and Tiffani Thiessen — reunited for a “Saved By The Bell” sketch on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.”
Some of Haskins’ castmates paid tribute to him.
“Dennis Haskins was a steady presence in my teenage years, the kind of figure who kept us in line while making sure we knew he was in our corner,” Thiessen, who played Kelly Kapowski, said in a statement. “I will always remember his kindness and be grateful for the memories we as a cast got to share with him. RIP Mr. B.”
Lopez, who played A.C. Slater, wrote in an Instagram post that he was “heartbroken” to hear about his “old friend” Haskins’ death.
“He played the principal, but Dennis was the biggest kid on the SBTB set. If you knew him, you loved him — and if there was karaoke, you knew Dennis was getting on that mic!” he wrote. “I’m grateful for the laughs, the memories, and the friendship we shared all these years. Rest easy, my friend. You’ll always be part of our Bayside family.”
Haskins’ other TV and film roles include appearances on “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia,” “A Million Ways to Die in the West,” “Men of a Certain Age, “The Bold and the Beautiful,” “Victorious,” “Mad Men,” “How I Met Your Mother,” “New Girl” and”Hot In Cleveland,” among others.
