Dennis Haskins, 1950 - 2026

Actor Dennis Haskins, who played Principal Belding ("Hey, hey, hey, what is going on here?") on the kidcom Saved by the Bell, died of Parkinson’s disease on Sept. 27. He was 75. The Tennessee native appeared in small roles in Archie Bunker’s Place, CHiPs, Knots Landing, Magnum PI, Frank’s Place, and other shows, till getting cast in Saved by the Bell (1989-92); he also appeared in various Saved spin-offs, TV-movies and reunions, most recently on Jimmy Fallon’s Tonight Show in 2015. Post-Saved, Haskins was seen in The Practice, The West Wing, JAG, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, The Bold and the Beautiful, Mad Men, How I Met Your Mother, A Million Ways to Die in the West, Hot in Cleveland, and, most recently, 2020’s A Bennett Song Holiday. Haskins told writer Lance Carter, “we’re not making any money off of Saved by the Bell anymore.  But a lot of people love the show. I have a wonderful fan base.  It’s just amazing to me.  This warm, wonderful smile at me because they love this show that we did that they grew up with.”