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Saved By The Bell star Dustin Diamond dies, aged 44

February 2, 2021
Dustin Diamond.

Actor Dustin Diamond, who starred as Samuel "Screech" Powers on Saved By The Bell, has died aged 44.

The star was hospitalised with stage four lung cancer.

A representative for Diamond confirmed he died today, TMZ reports, with his girlfriend by his side.

"Dustin did not suffer. He did not have to lie submerged in pain. For that, we are grateful," the actor’s spokesman, Roger Paul, told the Associated Press.

"Dustin was a humorous and high-spirited individual whose greatest passion was to make others laugh. He was able to sense and feel other peoples’ emotions to such a length that he was able to feel them too — a strength and a flaw, all in one."

Earlier this month, Diamond's team confirmed he had cancer and was undergoing chemotherapy after he was hospitalised in Florida.

Saved By The Bell aired from 1989 to 1993, and its spinoffs included Saved By The Bell: The College Years and Saved By The Bell: The New Class, both of which Diamond starred in. 

A sequel was launched on Peacock this fall featuring many from the original cast, including Elizabeth Berkley, Mario Lopez, Tiffani Thiessen and Mark-Paul Gosselaar. Diamond was not included.

Diamond had been sued several times for delinquent taxes and in foreclosure proceedings for missing mortgage payments. 

He has appeared on reality TV shows, made a sex tape and produced a tell-all documentary on Lifetime TV called The Unauthorized Saved By The Bell Story.

In 2015, he was sentenced to serve four months in jail for his part in a Wisconsin barroom stabbing.


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