Haskins starred as Principal Belding for all four seasons of ‘Saved by the Bell’ and reprised the role in the follow-up, ‘Saved by the Bell: The New Class’
Credit: Alice S. Hall/NBCU Photo Bank/Getty
NEED TO KNOW
- Saved by the Bell actor Dennis Haskins has died at 75, his agent confirms to PEOPLE
- He was best known as Principal Belding on Saved by the Bell and Saved by the Bell: The New Class
- A California karaoke bar he frequented for decades remembered him as a devoted regular who quietly lived with Parkinson’s
Dennis Haskins, best known for playing Principal Richard Belding in Saved by the Bell, has died. He was 75.
PEOPLE confirmed the beloved Tennessee-born actor’s death on Monday, Sept. 28.
“It’s a tragic loss,” his agent, Jay Schacher, told PEOPLE.
Credit: NBCUniversal/Getty
“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. He was my client and dear friend for over 20 years, and I will miss him terribly. I’m heartbroken,” Schacher wrote.
A cause of death has not been made public.
Saved by the Bell debuted in 1989 and followed popular kid and star athlete Zack Morris (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) and his group of friends at California’s fictional Bayside High School.
The series, which also starred Dustin Diamond, Tiffani Amber Thiessen, Mario Lopez, Elizabeth Berkley and Lark Voorhies, ran for four seasons until 1993.
Once the hit show ended, Haskins reprised his role as Principal Belding in Saved by the Bell: The New Class, which aired from 1993 to 2000.
Following news of his death, Dimples Karaoke Bar paid tribute to Haskins, who became a regular at the Burbank, Calif., establishment.
“Dennis was a staple at Dimples,” the bar’s Instagram account wrote in a heartfelt post.
“A lot of people thought he owned it, but he didn’t. He just loved the place and its people. He enjoyed singing for people, meeting them, and taking selfies with his fans. Dimples closed down about 11 years ago, and people still associate him with his beloved ‘second home.’ He was known to most as Mr. Belding from Saved by the Bell, but to us, he was much more than that,” the caption continued.
There were several photos in the carousel that showed Haskins smiling with bar patrons and staff. Lopez, who played high school jock A.C. Slater on the series, was also seen in a group photo with his former costar.
Credit: Paul Drinkwater/NBCU Photo Bank/Getty
Dimples disclosed that Haskins fell ill “about eight years ago,” saying that one of his health conditions that he stayed “silent” about was Parkinson’s, “because he did not want the attention.”
“He did not want to have to tell people. He would say, “What do I even say?” So I respected his wishes and stayed quiet, and I helped him through his journey into the next chapter of his life,” the post read.
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The karaoke bar said Haskins died on Sunday, Sept. 27, but they were confident that the actor was at peace and “probably entertaining the people in the sky.”
“What a cool and amazing life he had. Rest in peace, Dennis. You were very much loved and will never be forgotten,” the tribute concluded.
Haskins also starred in A Million Ways to Die in the West and episodes of Mad Men, Hot in Cleveland and New Girl.
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