Saved by the Bell

Synopsis of Saturday Morning Show

"It's all right, 'cause I'm saved by the bell."

On July 11, 1987, a prime-time special entitled Good Morning, Miss Bliss aired on NBC. Soon after, it became a series on the Disney Channel, starring The Parent Trap’s Hayley Mills as the teacher, Miss Bliss. Among her students were a young Zack, Screech, and Lisa. Their principal was Mr. Belding, who could switch from best pal to stern disciplinarian at a moment's notice.

The show moved to NBC in 1989, soon to become the network's first live-action hit since Land of the Lost in 1977. Playing with the big boys now, the show got rid of its title character as well as its title. Now known as Saved by the Bell, the new show featured Zack, the "preppie" stud, Screech, the nerd, and Lisa, the aspiring dress designer, as well as their new friends Slater, the handsome jock, Kelly, the boys’ object of desire, and Jessie, the intelligent girl (who was just as pretty and well-dressed as the other two girls, but no one seemed to notice).

When the kids weren’t attending Bayside High in Palisades, California, they were chewing the fat at their local hamburger hangout. Everything from major life decisions to pep rallies took place here, but most plots revolved around some girl-getting scheme by Zack. In the tradition of Jack Benny, Duane Hickman, and Gary Shandling, Zack often addressed the camera directly, confiding in the kids at home how things were going.

In 1992, the kids went prime-time with the special Saved by the Bell-Hawaiian Style. Later that season, Zack and the gang once again came out at night in the special Saved by the Bell Goes to College. That special segued into a nightly series, Saved by the Bell: The College Years, which, unfortunately, couldn’t be saved by anything.

During this time, the Saturday show was revamped as Saved by the Bell: The New Class. This cast was less successful than the original, so most of the characters, save Tommy, the greaser, and the cute Rachel, were soon dropped. In their place, rival Valley High students Ryan, Maria, and R.J. were transferred to the world’s coolest place to matriculate. But the real belle of the ball was Screech, returning to the show as Mr. Belding’s assistant. With a few more cast changes, Saved By the Bell: The New Class kept its Saturday school open through January 2000, becoming one of the biggest success stories in Saturday morning history.

The girls of the original cast each graduated to women on their next projects. Tiffani-Amber Thiessen went from nice to naughty as Val, on that other legendary teen show, Beverly Hills 90210. Elizabeth Berkley became forever linked to Showgirls after she starred in that silver screen disaster. Lark Voorhies went on to more adult shows such as Days of Our Lives and The Bold and the Beautiful.

Saved by the Bell is known for its huge fan base, which followed the show through its multiple seasons and incarnations. The inevitable Saved by the Bell imitators followed, but none has ever equaled the charm or success of the original.

Release History

1987 - 1989 Disney ( Good Morning, Miss Bliss )
8/20/89 - 9/4/93 NBC ( Saved by the Bell )
9/14/93 - 2/8/94 NBC ( The College Years )
9/11/93 - 1/8/00 NBC ( The New Class )

TV Sub Categories

live-action
comedy

TV Studio

Peter Engel, NBC

Television Cast

Good Morning, Miss Bliss (1987-89)
Miss Carrie Bliss Hayley Mills
Zachary "Zack" Morris Mark-Paul Gosselaar
Principal Richard Belding Dennis Haskins
Ms. Tina Paladrino Joan Ryan
Lisa Turtle Lark Voorhies
Samuel "Screech" Powers Dustin Diamond
Nicole "Nikki" Coleman Heather Hopper
Mikey Gonzalez Max Battimo
Milo Williams T.K. Carter

Saved by the Bell (1989-93)
Zackary "Zack" Morris Mark-Paul Gosselaar
Albert Clifford "A.C." Slater Mario Lopez
Samuel "Screech" Powers Dustin Diamond
Jessica "Jessie" Spano Elizabeth Berkley
Kelly Kapowski Tiffani-Amber Thiessen
Lisa Turtle Lark Voorhies
Mr. Richard Belding Dennis Haskins
Tori Scott (1992) Leanna Creel
Mr. Dewey (1989-90) Patrick O'Brian
Max (1989-90) Ed Alonzo
Stacey Carosi (1991) Leah Remini
Leon Carosi (1991) Ernie Sabella
Mr. Tuttle (1989-92) Jack Angeles
Miss Simpson (1989) Pamela Kosh
Miss Wentworth (1989) Carol Lawrence
Ox / Skud (1991-92) Troy Fromin
Ginger (1992) Bridgette Wilson

Saved by the Bell: The College Years (1993-94)
Zackery "Zack" Morris Mark-Paul Gosselaar
Kelly Kapowski Tiffani-Amber Thiessen
Albert Clifford "A.C." Slater Mario Lopez
Samuel "Screech" Powers Dustin Diamond
Leslie Burke Anne Tremko
Alex Taber Kiersten Warren
R.A. Mike Rogers Bob Golic
Prof. Jeremiah Lasky Patrick Fabian
Dean Susan McMann (1994) Holland Taylor

Saved by the Bell: The New Class (1993-2000)
Samuel "Screech" Powers (1994-2000) Dustin Diamond
Ryan Parker (1995-98) Richard Lee Jackson
Maria Lopez (1995-2000) Samantha Becker
Rachel Meyers (1994-97) Sarah Lancaster
Nicky Farina (1996-2000) Ben Gould
Tommy "D" De Luca (1993-96) Jonathan Angel
Katie Peterson (1996-2000) Lindsey McKeon
Lindsay Warner (1993-96) Natalia Cigliuti
Eric Little (1996-2000) Anthony Harrell
Megan Jones (1993-95) Bianca Lawson
Liz Miller (1997-2000) Ashley Lyn Cafagna
Tony Dillon (1998-2000) Tom Huntington
Principal Richard Belding Dennis Haskins
Scott Erickson (1993-94) Robert Sutherland Telfer
Barton "Weasel" Wyzell (1993-94) Isaac Lidsky
Vicki Needleman (1993-94) Bonnie Russavage
R.J. "Hollywood" Collins (1995-96) Salim Grant
Brian Keller (1994-95) Christian Oliver
Robert "Bobby" Wilson (1994-95) Spankee Rogers
Sandy (1994) Tara Reid
Stanley / Noogie (1994) Danny Strong