Dennis Haskins, ‘Saved by the Bell’ Principal Mr. Belding, Dies at 75

Dennis Haskins, best known to generations of television viewers as Principal Richard Belding on Saved by the Bell, has died. He was 75. Haskins’ death was confirmed Monday by a friend and caretaker to WTVC NewsChannel 9 in Chattanooga, Tennessee, where the actor was born. A cause of death has not been confirmed at this time.

For fans of Saved by the Bell, Haskins was simply Mr. Belding, the Bayside High principal who regularly found himself trying to keep Zack Morris and the rest of the gang in line. Stern when he needed to be but rarely without a softer side, Belding became just as much a part of the show’s identity as the students walking Bayside’s halls.

And, of course, there was that greeting. Haskins’ delivery of “Hey, hey, hey, what is going on here?” became one of the sitcom’s most recognizable running bits and remains instantly associated with the character decades later.

Haskins actually began playing Belding before Saved by the Bell as viewers know it. He portrayed the character on Good Morning, Miss Bliss before continuing the role when the franchise was reworked into Saved by the Bell. He would later return as Belding for Saved by the Bell: The New Class, extending his run with the franchise well beyond the original Bayside crew.

Although Haskins appeared in other television projects throughout his career, Mr. Belding remained the role that defined him in pop culture. For anyone who grew up watching Saved by the Bell on Saturday mornings or discovered it through the endless reruns that followed, it is hard to picture Bayside High without him.

Haskins was 75.