Dustin Diamond Dead: ‘Saved By the Bell’ Star Dies at 44

Dustin Diamond, best known as Samuel “Screech” Powers on the early ’90s sitcom Saved by the Bell, died on February 1, as first reported by TMZ. He was 44.

Diamond’s cause of death stemmed from a stage 4 cancer diagnosis made public on January 14. In an article published earlier on Monday by The Sun, Diamond’s friend Dan Block said, “We do not have any specific timelines, but we know that Dustin needs a miracle to overcome the small cell carcinoma he’s been diagnosed with.

“He was told weeks to five months is the average but a small percentage of people have lived one to two years with it being stage 4,” Block continued. “We are hoping that he is one of the people to outlive the odds and that we get as much time with him as possible.”

Block told The Sun that Diamond finally went to the hospital after a lump had been growing on his neck for some time, but the former actor didn’t want to seek treatment out of fear he would be recognized and made fun of. “It was a huge, huge lump in his throat. It was very big,” Block said.

GettyActor Dustin Diamond in 2010.

A representative for the actor told TMZ that Diamond’s girlfriend was with him when he died on Monday morning. “His condition had greatly declined since last week,” TMZ reported, and he was removed from breathing machines to transition to hospice care after his cancer had metastasized in his lungs.

“He was diagnosed with this brutal, relentless form of malignant cancer only three weeks ago,” Diamond’s reps shared in a statement on Facebook. “In that time, it managed to spread rapidly throughout his system; the only mercy it exhibited was its sharp and swift execution. Dustin did not suffer. He did not have to lie submerged in pain. For that, we are grateful.”

Diamond is preceded in death by his mother, who died of breast cancer. He was previously engaged to Amanda Schutz, but the two never married. In 2009, he married longtime girlfriend Jennifer Misner. However, the couple separated in 2013, as reported by The Sun.

Saved by the Bell Cast: Where Are They Now?Remember the “Saved by the Bell” cast members? Where are they now? For this list, we’ll be looking at various actors and actresses from “Saved by the Bell” and seeing what they’ve been up to since the sitcom ended in 1993. Our countdown includes Dustin Diamond, Elizabeth Berkley, Mario Lopez, and more! MsMojo catches up…2020-03-29T18:00:07Z

Former Saved By the Bell co-star Mark-Paul Gosselaar tweeted on Monday, “Deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Dustin Diamond, a true comedic genius. My sincere condolences to his family and friends. 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.”

Here’s what you need to know about Dustin Diamond:

1. Diamond Wanted to Spend His Remaining Time With His Girlfriend

GettyActor Dustin Diamond poses for a portrait during the 2007 Sundance Film Festival.

On January 12, TMZ reported that Diamond, who was born on January 7, 1977, in San Jose, California, had been hospitalized in Florida after feeling “pain all over his body,” which doctors later discovered was terminal cancer.

On January 21, Diamond completed his first round of chemotherapy, CNN reported, and another round was already scheduled.

Roger Paul, Diamond’s representative, told CNN, “Dustin is looking forward to spending more time with his girlfriend, playing his bass guitar/video games, as well as making videos for his fans on social media.”

2. Diamond’s Friend Revealed the Actor Had 2 Dying Wishes

Block told The Sun of Diamond’s dying wishes. “There are two things Dustin asked for,” he said, “the ability to talk to Justin Chancellor about music and to be able to visit Disney World to see Star Wars Galaxy Edge.” Chancellor plays bass in the progressive metal band Tool.

“Dustin was learning to play several Tool songs and wanted to start a Tool tribute band,” Block continued. “He was in the process of starting the band before being diagnosed with cancer. He would play the song and play along with his bass while watching YouTube videos.

“It would be amazing if Justin saw this article and could reach out,” Block said. “It would be granting one of Dustin’s dying wishes and we would greatly appreciate it. He’s also a huge Star Wars fan – so we’re hoping we can find a way to arrange that.”

3. Diamond Appeared in Dozens of Films After Spending 11 Years Playing Screech Powers

Dustin Diamond’s Message for His Former ‘Saved by the Bell’ CastmatesDustin Diamond broke his silence to “Extra’s” Mario Lopez in our headline-making, news-breaking interview, and now he’s telling his former “Saved by the Bell” co-star about the fall out from his tell all memoir, “Behind the Bell.”2016-05-19T19:29:03Z
Diamond spent over a decade of his life performing the role of Screech on Saved by the Bell and its numerous spin-off series and TV movies between 1989 and 2000, according to his IMDb page. He first played the role in the Saved by the Bell predecessor, Good Morning, Miss Bliss, from 1988 to 1989.

As for his co-stars Tiffani Amber Thiessen, Mario Lopez and Mark-Paul Gosselaar, the popular sitcom served as a jumping-off point for Diamond to pursue a career on the big screen. Between 2001 and 2020, he appeared in nearly two dozen films.

He starred in 2014’s Scavenger Killers, played the role of Oliver Jaffe in 2015’s Bleeding Hearts and in 2016 took on the part of Raynard in the horror flick Joker’s Wild. His most recent role was as a music teacher in the 2020 short Catching Up. His 51 acting credits also include a role in the 1988 movie Purple People Eater and two appearances on the family drama sitcom The Wonder Years.

4. Diamond Published a Tell-All Memoir About Life as a Child Star, Revealing BTS Details of ‘Saved By the Bell’

In 2009, Diamond published a memoir, Behind the Bell, in which he aired a lot of dirty laundry of his experience as a child star, and what it was really like behind-the-scenes of the NBC’s wholesome sitcom. These NSFW stories inspired a Lifetime movie on the topic in 2014.

The Unauthorized Saved by the Bell Story – TrailerCheck out the first trailer for Lifetime’s look at what happened behind-the-scenes on Saved by the Bell.2014-08-19T04:00:03Z

Diamond’s book details the “cast and crew’s extreme lifestyle: sex, drugs, and wild parties,” as described by Amazon. His memoir “gives readers the disheartening story of an ex-child star,” and struggles he had trying to position himself as a dramatic actor following his years playing the beloved comedic nerd at the fictional Bayside High School.

Screech Powers logoless scenes2019-09-29T04:45:48Z

When NBC’s the Peacock reprised Saved by the Bell in 2020, Diamond was not asked to be a part of the reboot. In a November interview with Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live!, Diamond’s former co-star Elizabeth Berkley revealed that she hadn’t spoken with him “in a long time” but hoped that he could maybe appear on a future season of the reboot:

We’ll see if there’s another season. Maybe it’s something to explore, and I haven’t talked to him in a long time. Honestly, since I think we finished the show is the last time I actually spoke to him, but not because of anything bad. I mean, he was always nice to me and he’s had his journey, but really I’ve kept more in touch with Mark-Paul (Gosselaar), Tiffani (Thiessen), Mario (Lopez) and then, from time to time, Lark (Voorhies).

5. Diamond Fell on Hard Times & Spent Time in Jail After Being Convicted of Stabbing Someone in 2014

GettyDustin Diamond, second from left, leaves his preliminary hearing at Ozaukee County Courthouse on January 5, 2015 in Port Washington, Wisconsin.

Diamond struggled with his personal life for years following after Saved by the Bell came to an end. In 2001, he filed for bankruptcy in California and started a campaign to raise money by selling T-shirts that said, “I paid $15 to save Screech’s house,” as reported by the Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal Sentinel.

In 2006, Diamond faced foreclosure on his home, and in 2009, the actor was sued in Ozaukee County Circuit Court by We Energies. The suit claimed that Diamond owed $2,079.40 in unpaid utility bills.

In 2014, Diamond was sentenced to four months in a Wisconsin jail following a barroom stabbing, NBC News reported. At the time, Diamond was living in the Milwaukee suburbs. He was convicted of stabbing a bar customer “in the armpit with a switchblade.”

Dustin Diamond Interview | ‘Save By The Bell’ Star on Jail Sentence‘Saved by the Bell’ Star Dustin Diamond opened up to former co-star Mario Lopez about the stabbing incident that led him to serve time in a Wisconsin jail. SUBSCRIBE to GMA ► https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCH1oRy1dINbMVp3UFWrKP0w/subscribe To read the full story and others, visit http://www.goodmorningamerica.com Good Morning America (GMA) brings viewers an award-winning combination of breaking news, exclusive…2016-05-18T13:52:41Z

The police reported the injury caused non-life-threatening injuries to the victim. His then-fiancée, Amanda Schutz, was also charged and found guilty of disorderly conduct.

After 30 days in jail, Diamond was released early and subsequently placed in a work-release program. Both he and Schutz were required to pay the victim $1,500 in restitution.

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