Stars From Saved By The Bell You Didn't Know Died
Fans were delighted when most of the original "Saved by the Bell" cast signed on to reprise their roles in the 2020 reboot series, which introduced us to a new generation of Bayside students. The new kids take center stage while the old timers play supporting roles: Zack Morris (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) has become the Governor of California in the years since we last saw him, and the First Lady of California is none other than Kelly Kapowski (now Kelly Morris), played by the returning Tiffani Thiessen. A.C. Slater (Mario Lopez) goes back to Bayside to become the gym coach, and Elizabeth Berkley also returned to the gang's old school as a counselor (Jessie Spano is now a doctor and New York Times best-selling author).
Lark Voorhies' Lisa Turtle is now a fashion designer who lives in Paris, though she's been able to make a few guest appearances on the new show, much to the delight of older viewers. But sadly, the final member of the original "Saved by the Bell" six is no longer around, and he's not the only former cast member we've lost. It's been over 30 years since "Saved by the Bell" debuted on NBC, and we've said goodbye to several members of the Bayside family in that time.
From the kid who made it cool to be a geek to the teachers that left an impression on us, we've put together a list of actors from "Saved by the Bell" that left us too soon.
Jack Angeles (Mr. Tuttle)
Best remembered for playing Bayside teacher Mr. Tuttle on "Saved by the Bell," the larger-than-life actor Jack Angeles "passed away suddenly and peacefully following a brief hospitalization" in 2009, his obituary confirmed. He was 59.
Angeles was a lawyer in New York City before relocating to California in 1982. He worked in the legal departments of Columbia Pictures and the Paramount subsidiary Wilshire Court Productions while attempting to launch an acting career, and he'd achieved that goal by the end of the decade. He played (you guessed it) a lawyer on the primetime soap opera "Falcon Crest" in 1989, and that same year he debuted as Mr. Tuttle, a rival of Mr. Belding and generally well-liked among the students. Mr. Tuttle lost out on the principal job to Mr. Belding prior to the events of the show, and the two rarely see eye to eye (Tuttle is the acting leader of the local teacher's union).
He appeared as Mr. Tuttle in the first two seasons of "Saved by the Bell" and, after seemingly vanishing in Season 3, returned for the fourth and final season (he leads a rebellion against Mr. Belding in the episode "Teacher's Strike" after Zack and Slater trick him into thinking that the principal is conspiring against him). It was Angeles' most memorable role, though he also popped up in "Blind Faith," "Lucky Chances," and the ABC sitcom "Growing Pains," in which he played Kvetch-O the Clown.
Monty Hoffman (Coach Sonski)
Comedian and actor Monty Hoffman, who played Coach Sonski on "Saved by the Bell," died aged 60 in 2013. The funnyman used to joke about his time on the show in his standup routine. "Today I was at the mall," he recalled during one gig. "... And this kid was looking at me, and I used to be on this show 'Saved by the Bell,' I played the wrestling coach. So I thought he recognized me from the show. So finally I go, 'Kid, what seems to be the problem?' And he goes, 'Hey mister, are you the guy from the Operation game?'" He had nothing to do with that game, but Hoffman was involved in plenty of other comedies over the years.
He made his onscreen debut in the bizarre Marvel movie "Howard the Duck" in 1986 and would become a regular TV guest star during the 1990s. Hoffman went on to make appearances in "Roseanne," "Married With Children," "Boy Meets World," "Everybody Loves Raymond," and, of course, "Saved by the Bell." His biggest role was that of Tommy Barlett on the short-lived Drew Carey sitcom "The Good Life," though some may also remember him from his feature length appearances: Hoffman turned up in the comedy "Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star," and he made quite the impression on Judd Apatow on the set of "Funny People." Having the likes of him around "was very exciting, especially for me and Adam [Sandler]," Apatow once said (via The Comic's Comic).
Louan Gideon (Becky Belding)
Louan Gideon played the wife of Dennis Haskins' Principal Richard Belding in "Saved by the Bell," and although she only appeared in a single episode of the original show, she went through quite the ordeal. In Season 4's "Earthquake," Zack hatches a plan to get out of the physics test that he hasn't studied for. Mr. Belding's wife Becky (Gideon) is heavily pregnant, and when she shows up at Bayside the week of the test, Zack concocts a story about a planned-in-secret baby shower that just so happens to clash with the test. The blindsided Mr. Belding approves the party, which takes an unexpected turn — an earthquake strikes, trapping Zack in an elevator with Mrs. Belding. The head teacher's most irksome student helps deliver his baby.
Gideon reprised the role of Mrs. Belding in 1995 when she showed up during the Christmas episode of "Saved by the Bell: The New Class" in Season 3. By this point, she was recurring on "The Secret World of Alex Mack" as Danielle Atron, the villainous CEO of a chemical company. "It was great fun," she told the Citizen Times of Asheville, North Carolina, where she settled down after retiring in 2005.
She died of cancer in 2014 at the age of 58, her husband confirmed. Other notable credits include the NBC soap "Search for Tomorrow," on which she played Liza Walton, as well as "Seinfeld," "Third Rock from the Sun," "Sabrina, The Teenage Witch," and "Malcolm in the Middle."
Gary Beach (Gem Diamond)
Gary Beach was best known for playing hapless theater director Roger DeBris in the stage and film versions of "The Producers" (he won a Tony Award for his turn in the Broadway show), but "Saved by the Bell" fans will no doubt remember him as Gem Diamond, the salesman that scams Zack in the Season 4 episode "Class Rings." Zack has been left in charge of procuring rings for everyone graduating from Bayside that year, and he falls for the slick Gem's sales patter hook, line, and sinker. When he realizes that the rings contain fake stones, he and A.C. Slater try their best to figure the situation out, but it's an intervention from Screech that ultimately saves the day.
Beach only appeared in one episode of "Saved by the Bell," and while it was far from his only TV credit (he worked on everything from "Cheers" and "Murder, She Wrote" to "The Jamie Foxx Show" and "Family Guy"), he's more of a stage person. "I always wanted to be a performer, but it never occurred to me to be a television performer or a movie actor," he said to the AP News back in 2001 (via The Hollywood Reporter). "To me, it was always Broadway." He earned Tony nominations for his work on 1994's "Beauty and the Beast" (he was hilarious as the eccentric candelabra Lumiere) and the 2004 revival of "La Cage aux Folles."
Beach died in 2018 at the age of 70, his manager confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter.
Henry Polic II (Mr. Bainbridge)
Henry Polic II, who was perhaps best known for his collaboration with Mel Brooks (he played the Sheriff of Nottingham on his series "When Things Were Rotten") and voicing Dr. Jonathan Crane (aka Scarecrow) in "Batman: The Animated Series," died of cancer in 2013. The Pittsburgh native spent his final days in a Los Angeles assisted living facility, his manager told The Hollywood Reporter. He was 68.
Polic studied acting at Florida State University before making the move to Hollywood. The Sheriff of Nottingham was his big break, opening the door to another classic character: he portrayed Dracula on the NBC show "Monster Squad" the following year. He would go on to guest star on everything from "Mork & Mindy" and "Murder, She Wrote" to "The Love Boat" and "Fantasy Island," before landing his part on "Saved by the Bell."
He played drama teacher Mr. Bainbridge in the Season 4 episode "Snow White and the Seven Dorks," in which the gang perform a rap version of the famous story. Fans will probably remember it as that weird episode where Zack and Jessie almost became a thing — the two have to kiss as part of the performance (to the sheer horror of Kelly and Slater), and some unexpected feelings emerge. The highlight of the episode, however, is Brainbridge waxing lyrical about fairy tales. "Fairy tales are the very foundations of drama," he tells his students. "Consider the emotional range of Snow White: Loyalty, envy, revenge, romance."
Avery Schreiber (Dr. Mertz)
He was at the height of his fame in the 1960s and '70s, and Avery Schreiber was as funny as ever when he guest starred on "Saved by the Bell" in the '80s. The comedian played Dr. Mertz in Season 1's "Beauty and the Screech," in which Zack convinces Screech to help Kelly pass her science exam. She wants to go to a George Michael concert (again: 1980s), and the only way her parents will allow this is if she passes. Zack thinks he's getting in Kelly's good books by recommending Screech, but his plan backfires when Kelly starts to develop feelings for Screech, who (believe it or not) turns her down in the end. Schreiber plays the episode's science teacher, an enthusiastic, mustachioed man who likes to hand out molecule hats to his best students.
Schreiber first gained attention appearing on the likes of "Hollywood Palace" and "The Ed Sullivan Show" with his partner, Jack Burns. He would later become known for his humorous songs and as the guy from the Doritos commercials, playing a variety of wacky characters during a memorable ad campaign. Like fellow late "Saved by the Bell" star Henry Polic II, Schreiber sharpened his comedic chops working with Mel Brooks — he played the Tax Assessor in "Robin Hood: Men in Tights," and appeared as a peasant in "Dracula: Dead and Loving It."
He died of a heart attack in 2002, his wife told The New York Times. Schreiber was 66.
Mary Pat Gleason (Madame Oeuf)
Character actor Mary Pat Gleason, who was best known for playing the affable waitress Eleanor in "A Cinderella Story," died of cancer in 2020. "I am so saddened by this news," Hilary Duff, who starred as Samantha "Sam" Montgomery in the film, told USA Today. "Mary was a wonderful woman who was such an industry veteran and badass. I loved being on set with her. Just being in her presence, you felt comfortable and safe — like a warm hug. I feel grateful to have gotten even the small amount of time with Mary that I did many moons ago." Gleason was 70.
Gleason had nearly 175 onscreen acting credits to her name by the time of her death, and she was still working right until the end (her final film, the romantic drama "Saving Paradise," was released in 2021). She appeared in dozens of big TV shows during a remarkable four-decade career, including "Full House," "L.A. Law," "Friends," "Will & Grace," "Sex and the City," "Desperate Housewives," "NCIS: Los Angeles," "Grey's Anatomy," "2 Broke Girls," and, more recently, Chuck Lorre's CBS sitcom "Mom," on which she recurred as a member of an Alcoholics Anonymous group.
"Saved by the Bell" fans will recall seeing Gleason as Madame Oeuf (literally Mrs. Egg), a French teacher who is far from fluent in the language. She pops up in Season 2 episode "The Babysitters," the one where Kelly leaves her little brother, Billy, in the care of her friends.
Hamilton Camp (Mr. Margolies)
Hamilton Camp appeared in the very first "Saved by the Bell" episode, 1989's "Dancing to the Max." It introduced viewers to The Max, the main hangout for students from Bayside High. The venue plays host to a dance contest (hosted by the DJ and radio personality Casey Kasem, who is also sadly no longer with us), and both Zack and Slater intend on taking Kelly as their partner. Camp plays Mr. Margolies, one of the teachers on duty in the episode. The musician-turned-actor died in 2005 at the age of 70, as reported by the Chicago Tribune.
The Brit got his first taste of fame in the early 1960s as half of the folk music act Gibson & Camp (Gibson being Bob Gibson). The pair's live album "Gibson & Camp at the Gate of Horn" became essential listening and is thought to have influenced everyone from Simon & Garfunkel and John Denver to The Beatles. According to the Chicago Tribune, the duo "broke up when Camp discovered improv and became one of the early members of Chicago's Second City."
Camp went on to become a prolific character actor in the years that followed. He appeared on "The Monkees," "Bewitched," "Bonanza," "Starsky and Hutch," "M*A*S*H," "The Twilight Zone," and "Cheers" to name but a fraction (he had over 200 credits on his resume), all before "Saved by the Bell." He kept just as busy in the '90s and beyond, working primarily as a voice actor.
Dustin Diamond (Samuel 'Screech' Powers)
Fans of the original "Saved by the Bell" would have no doubt loved to have seen Dustin Diamond return as the loveable geek Samuel "Screech" Powers in Peacock's reboot (his absence is explained when Slater reveals that he's an astronaut these days), though sadly that's no longer possible. The actor died in 2021, just weeks after being told he had stage 4 lung cancer. "I'm deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Dustin Diamond, a true comedic genius," Mark-Paul Gosselaar told Entertainment Weekly. "Looking back at our time working together, I will miss those raw, brilliant sparks that only he was able to produce. A pie in your face, my comrade." He was 44.
Diamond had a string of legal problems in the years leading up to his death (he served three months after stabbing a man during a bar fight on Christmas day in 2014), which many presumed was the reason he wasn't invited back. According to Lark Voorhies, he was contacted about reprising his role, but he wanted too much money. "The almighty dollar rules on that," she told Toronto's KiSS 92.5. "He wants to be paid and respected." As the most recognizable "Saved by the Bell" cast member (remember, he stuck around for "The College Years" and "The New Class"), he wanted "the perfect contract," as Voorhies described it, but it wasn't forthcoming.
Diamond starred alongside Tara Reid in his final film, the yet-to-be-released B-movie "The Curse of the Zombie Pirates."