Saved by the Bell: Berkley, Ryan & McKeon Remember Dennis Haskins

Posted in: NBC, TV | Tagged: Saved by the Bell

Saved by the Bell: Berkley, Ryan & McKeon Remember Dennis Haskins

Saved by the Bell stars Elizabeth Berkley, Joan Ryan, and "The New Class's" Lindsey McKeon paid tribute to Dennis Haskins, aka Mr. Belding.

Published Mon, 05 Oct 2026 10:37:08 -0500
by Tom Chang
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Article Summary

• Saved by the Bell star Dennis Haskins, beloved as Principal Belding, is remembered after his September 27 passing.
• Elizabeth Berkley honored Haskins as a kind, protective Saved by the Bell mentor who respected the young cast.
• Good Morning, Miss Bliss alum Joan Ryan shared how Dennis Haskins won Mr. Belding and praised his generous spirit.
• Saved by the Bell: The New Class star Lindsey McKeon paid tribute to Haskins and his Saturday morning TV legacy.

There's no doubt how beloved Dennis Haskins, who passed on September 27th after a private battle from Parkinson's, remains to generations of fans from 1980s TV, appearing in some of the biggest cult hits of the time, generations of Saved by the Bell fans who grew up as him as Richard Belding, the principal at Bayside High from 1988-2000 across two shows, and new fans who remember with him after the NBC Saturday morning franchise from his memorable roles on It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia and Hot in Cleveland. The actor appeared in the most episodes of the Sam Bobrick franchise dating back to its original incarnation of the Disney Channel's Good Morning, Miss Bliss in 1988 before it moved to NBC as Saved by the Bell in 1989, running for four seasons to 1992, and would also star in the spinoff series The New Class, appearing in all 143 episodes in all seven seasons from 1993-2000. Haskins would guest star in the prime-time spinoff The College Years and appear in the two TV movies Hawaiian Style (1992) and Wedding in Las Vegas (1994), the final time the main cast would be together in the franchise. Original series star Elizabeth Berkley (Jesse Spano), Good Morning, Miss Bliss star Joan Ryan (Tina Paladrino), and The New Class star Lindsey McKeon (Katie Peterson) posted their tributes online to remember Mr. Belding.

Saved by the Bell Stars Elizabeth Berkley, Joan Ryan, and Lindsey McKeon Paid Tribute to Dennis Haskins

Berkley was one of the newer additions to the cast when NBC rebranded Miss Bliss to Saved by the Bell alongside Tiffani Thiessen's Kelly Kapowski, and Mario Lopez's A.C. Slater, joining holdovers Mark-Paul Gosselaar (Zack Morris), Dustin Diamond (Samuel "Screech" Powers), Lark Voorhies (Lisa Turtle), and Haskins. Her Jesse Spano not only became an empowering feminist voice on the show, but also more than held her own against Lopez's occasionally chauvinistic Slater. Both reprised their roles for the Tracey Wigfield 2020 Peacock reboot of the same name as the "adult" leads with Gosselaar, Thiessen, and Voorhies in more supporting roles. Haskins and the late Dustin Diamond (who passed in 2021) didn't participate.

"I started Saved by the Bell when I was 15 years old. We were six teenagers at such a formative and impressionable time in our lives," Berkley wrote. "Dennis was kind, protective and deeply caring. He gave us space to be ourselves and to figure out who we were becoming, while always making us feel that he was there if we needed him. He treated us as equals, as the professionals that we were. He respected and trusted us. He was an incredible scene partner who cared deeply about the craft, the work, and about us. You could feel it in the way he showed up, both as an actor and as a person. Mr. Belding couldn't have been anyone else. So much of what made him so loved came from Dennis's inherent goodness, the same goodness we were lucky enough to receive and be around every day. 🤍🙏✨"

Ryan played one of the faculty cast on Good Morning, Miss Bliss (rebranded as part of SBTB as season 1) as Ms. Paladrino, who specialized in drama, art, and music, back when the series was set at John F. Kennedy Junior High. She acted as the quirky close friend and sounding board for the title character, played by Hayley Mills. She shared a scene with Mills and Haskins and shared how they both landed the Disney Channel series: "Boy, this is all so surreal now. It seems like I keep losing parts of my history. I mean, we all are! Mr BELDING? Rest in peace, sweet Dennis Haskins," she wrote. I had forgotten the part of our story where, before we were both cast in Good Morning, Miss Bliss aka Saved By The Bell, we played husband and wife in the musical ANGRY HOUSEWIVES. My then manager, Neil Hassman, brought the producers of Good Morning, Miss Bliss to see me in the show. After I had signed to play the role of Tina Pallodrino on GMMB, and they had still not cast the role of Mr. Belding, Neal brought them back again to see Dennis. And after something like seven or eight auditions, Dennis began his role in making history when he got the part of Mr. Belding."

Ryan continued, "Dennis was always such a generous actor and coworker, and he never let anyone forget how he had gotten the role. I would always forget that part of the story, and every time I saw him, he would make sure that everyone within earshot knew how he had gotten the part. That's who he was. The last time I saw him, Caryn Richman and I went with him to karaoke, and he was surrounded by fans and could not have been kinder to each and every one. And boy, Dennis sure loved karaoke. I've tried to get in contact with Dennis many times in the last few years, and now I'm thinking that perhaps he was sick and not answering calls because of it. Dennis, you have left a beautiful and meaningful legacy, my friend. We will all miss your beautiful spirit."

McKeon's Katie joined Saved by the Bell: The New Class in 1996 during the show's fourth season. She had an on-and-off relationship with Nicky (Ben Gould) and, like Berkley's Jesse, was the smartest in her class. "Rest in peace Dennis 🙏🏼 you will always be remembered as an icon on our Saturday morning TV!" she wrote. "Thankful for all the good memories Principal Belding! #SavedByTheBell #RestInPeace." You can check out Gosselaar, Thiessen, Lopez, and Voorhies's tributes here.

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