Dennis Haskins (born November 18, 1950) is an American actor known for his role as Principal Richard Belding in the teen

sitcom A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...

Saved by the Bell ''Saved by the Bell'' is an American television teen sitcom created by Sam Bobrick for NBC. The series premiered, in prime time, on August 20, 1989, a Sunday night. Targeted at kids and teens, ''Saved by the Bell'' was broadcast in the United ...

'', which ran from 1989 to 1993 on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

. He then went on to star in '' Saved by the Bell: The New Class'', which aired from 1993 to 2000. He also portrayed the role as a regular in ''

Good Morning, Miss Bliss ''Good Morning, Miss Bliss'', also retroactively known as ''Saved by the Bell: The Junior High Years'', is an American teen sitcom that originally aired on the Disney Channel from November 30, 1988, until March 18, 1989 (and later also in syndi ...

''.

Early life

He was born in

Chattanooga, Tennessee Chattanooga ( ) is a city in Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. It is located along the Tennessee River and borders Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the south. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, it is Tennessee ...

. Haskins is an alumnus of Our Lady of Perpetual Help as well as Notre Dame High School in Chattanooga and of the

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UT Chattanooga, UTC, or Chattanooga) is a public university in Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States. It was founded in 1886 and is part of the University of Tennessee System. History UTC was founde ...

. He played basketball at UTC after failing to make the team at the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (or The University of Tennessee; UT; UT Knoxville; or colloquially UTK or Tennessee) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee, United St ...

. He was also a member of the cheerleading squad. Haskins is a member of

Kappa Sigma Kappa Sigma (), commonly known as Kappa Sig or KSig, is an American collegiate social fraternity founded at the University of Virginia in 1869. Kappa Sigma is one of the five largest international Fraternities and sororities in North America, fr ...

fraternity. Dennis Haskins currently splits his time between

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

and

Winthrop, Massachusetts Winthrop is a city in Suffolk County, Massachusetts, Suffolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 19,316 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Winthrop is an ocean-side suburban town in Greater Boston situated at the ...

. Before breaking into acting, Haskins was a contestant on the TV game shows ''

Press Your Luck ''Press Your Luck'' is an American television game show created by Bill Carruthers and Jan McCormack. Contestants answer trivia questions to earn "spins" on a randomly cycling game board. The board's spaces display cash, prizes, extra spins, sp ...

'' and ''

Scrabble ''Scrabble'' is a word game in which two to four players score points by placing tiles, each bearing a single letter, onto a Board game, game board divided into a 15×15 grid of squares. The tiles must form words that, in crossword fashion, re ...

''.

Career

Television and film

Before his role on ''Saved by the Bell'', Haskins appeared in several episodes of ''

The Dukes of Hazzard ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' is an American action comedy television series created by Gy Waldron that aired on CBS from January 26, 1979, to February 8, 1985, with a total of seven seasons consisting of List of The Dukes of Hazzard episodes, 147 ...

'' in different roles. In the pilot episode, he plays a Boar's Nest patron whom Daisy thrashes after he attempts to grope her while she's working as a waitress. Haskins, who auditioned seven times for the role of Mr. Belding, first appeared as the character in 1988's ''Good Morning, Miss Bliss'' on the

Disney Channel Disney Channel is an American pay television television channel, channel that serves as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney Entertainment business segment of the Walt Disney Company ...

. After a year the show was retooled as ''Saved by the Bell'' on NBC, with Haskins being the only adult member of the regular cast. Known for the catchphrase "Hey, hey, hey, what is going on here?", he continued the role on the spinoff ''Saved by the Bell: The New Class'' until 2000. He had a brief cameo as himself in the 2006 film '' The Boys & Girls Guide to Getting Down''. As a guest on the March 4, 2010 episode of ''

Late Night with Jimmy Fallon ''Late Night with Jimmy Fallon'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show was the third installment of the '' Late Night'' franchise. Hosted by Jimmy Fallon,

'', Haskins boasted he was capable of bench pressing 150 pounds as a senior member of Notre Dame men's varsity basketball team. On February 4, 2015, Haskins reunited with

Mark-Paul Gosselaar Mark-Paul Harry Gosselaar (; born March 1, 1974) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Zack Morris in the NBC series ''Saved by the Bell'' and both its sequel series, '' Saved by the Bell: The College Years'' and the 2020 Peacock o ...

Elizabeth Berkley Elizabeth Berkley ( ) is an American actress and producer. She played Jessie Spano in the ''Saved by the Bell'' television franchise and Nomi Malone in the controversial 1995 Paul Verhoeven film '' Showgirls''. She had supporting roles in the ...

Mario Lopez Mario Lopez (born October 10, 1973) is an American actor and television host. He has appeared on several television series, in films, and on Broadway theatre, Broadway. He is known for his portrayal of A.C. Slater on ''Saved by the Bell'', ''S ...

and

Tiffani Thiessen Tiffani Amber Thiessen (born January 23, 1974) is an American actress. Her roles as List of Saved by the Bell characters#Kelly Kapowski, Kelly Kapowski on NBC's ''Saved by the Bell'' (1989–1993) and its Saved by the Bell#Spin-offs, spin-off me ...

on ''

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by actor and comedian Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It i ...

'' where they appeared in a ''Saved by the Bell'' sketch with Fallon. He appeared in the 2014 film ''

A Million Ways to Die in the West ''A Million Ways to Die in the West'' is a 2014 American Western comedy film directed by Seth MacFarlane and written by MacFarlane, Alec Sulkin and Wellesley Wild. The film features an ensemble cast including MacFarlane, Charlize Theron, Aman ...

'' as a snake oil salesman at the fair. In recent years, he has been lobbying to become a cast member on ABC's ''

Dancing with the Stars ''Strictly Come Dancing (widely known as Dancing with the Stars)'' is an international television franchise based on the format of the British TV series '' Strictly Come Dancing,'' itself a successor to the show ''Come Dancing'' (1950–1998) ...

''.

Music and other media

On August 31, 2009, Haskins released his first music album called "Karaoke with Your Favorite Principal Dennis." On the album, he sings everything from " Piano Man" to " Mustang Sally", the latter being a duet with

Hulk Hogan Terry Gene Bollea (; born August 11, 1953), better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE as a brand ambassador. Known for his flamboyance and massive physiq ...

's daughter Brooke Hogan. The CD was recorded in the summer of 2009 at Mikron Studios in South Pittsburg, Tennessee, with Mike Headrick. Cody McCarver produced the project, and Mike Yarworth financed it. More recently, in 2010, Haskins appeared in the video for "See You in Shell" by experimental metalcore band Iwrestledabearonce, which parodied ''Saved by the Bell'' and films by

John Hughes John Hughes may refer to: Arts and Entertainment Literature *John Hughes (poet) (1677–1720), English poet *John Hughes (1790–1857), English author *John Ceiriog Hughes (1832–1887), Welsh poet *John Hughes (writer) (born 1961), Australian au ...

. Haskins is also a fan of professional wrestling and

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. A global integrated media and entertainment company, ...

. He has appeared in multiple episodes of ''Z! True Long Island Story'', a

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

series by

professional wrestler

Zack Ryder Matthew Brett Cardona (born May 14, 1985) is an American professional wrestler. He is a freelancer who competes on the independent circuit as well as making in ring appearances for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), All Elite Wrestling (AEW) ...

. He is also friends with former

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

pitching coach

Rick Honeycutt Frederick Wayne Honeycutt (born June 29, 1954), nicknamed "Honey", is an American former professional baseball coach and pitcher. Honeycutt pitched in Major League Baseball (MLB) for six different teams over 21 years, from 1977 to 1997. He pitc ...

. On July 14, 2016, Haskins performed on stage with the 90s themed band, Saved by the 90s, in Toledo, Ohio, at a

Toledo Mud Hens The Toledo Mud Hens are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Toledo, Ohio, and play their home games at Fifth Third Field. A baseball team nicknamed the ...

minor league baseball game. Haskins appears in the music video for Dirty Heads' "Vacation". He is seen in an empty high school lip syncing to the entire track. Haskins also appears in the music video for Khalid's "Young Dumb & Broke" where he plays a principal making an end of year announcement over the school's intercom.

Filmography

*''

'' (1979–1985) (TV series)...Elmo Smith / Gate Guard (uncredited) / Charlie Watkins / Moss *''

Archie Bunker's Place ''Archie Bunker's Place'' is an American television sitcom produced as a continuation of ''All in the Family''. It aired on CBS from September 23, 1979 to April 4, 1983. After the final first-run telecast on CBS in April 1983, the series went i ...

'' (1979–1983) (TV series)...Workman *''Hardcastle and McCormick: Rolling Thunder'' (1983) (TV series)...Cop #1 *''Magnum PI: Autumn Warrior'' (1986) (TV series)...Del Haynes *''

'' (1987) (TV series)... Mr. Richard Belding *''Hiroshima Maiden'' (1988) (TV)... Hal Latimer *''

'' (1989) (TV series)... Principal Richard Belding *'' The Image'' (1990) (TV)... Steven Fish *''Eyewitness to Murder'' (1991)... Dr. Baldwin *'' Saved by the Bell: Hawaiian Style'' (1992) (TV)... Mr. Richard Belding *'' Saved by the Bell: The College Years'' (1993) (TV series, guest)... Mr. Richard Belding *'' Saved by the Bell: The New Class'' (1993) (TV series)... Principal Richard Belding *'' Saved by the Bell: Wedding in Las Vegas'' (1994) (TV)... Mr. Richard Belding *'' Figure It Out: Family Style'' (1998)... Himself (panelist) *'' The Boy with the X-Ray Eyes'' (1999)... Boyd Russell *''The Practice'' (2001) Psychiatrist *''18'' (2001)... Laura's Dad *''

The West Wing ''The West Wing'' is an American political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the West Wing of the White House, where t ...

'' "Bartlet for America" (2001)... C.E.O. Donor #2 *''

Max Keeble's Big Move ''Max Keeble's Big Move'' is a 2001 American comedy film directed by Tim Hill, written by David L. Watts, James Greer, Jonathan Bernstein and Mark Blackwell and starring Alex D. Linz, Larry Miller, Jamie Kennedy, Nora Dunn, and Robert Carra ...

'' (2001)... Mr. Kohls *''The Stoneman'' (2002)... Dean Hendricks *''An Ordinary Killer'' (2002)... Ronald Smith *''Dismembered'' (2003) *''Going Down'' (2003)... Uncle Frank *'' Red Water'' (2003) (TV)... Captain Dale Landry *''Tangy Guacamole'' (2003)... Toss Honeycut *'' 7th Heaven'': "Stand Up" (2003)... Traffic Officer *'' An Ordinary Killer'' (2004)... Ronald Smith *''Dead End Road'' (2004)... Mr. Makepiece *'' JAG'' (2004) (TV Series)... Airport Security S-1 *''

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'', also known colloquially simply as ''Always Sunny'', is an American sitcom created by Rob McElhenney and co-developed by Glenn Howerton for FX (TV channel), FX. It premiered on August 4, 2005, and stars Charl ...

'' (2005)... Coach Murray *''Wild Michigan'' (2005)... Sheriff Folgar *''The Treasure of Painted Forest'' (2005)... Sheriff Thomas *'' The Boys & Girls Guide to Getting Down'' (2006)... Himself *''Revamped'' (2007) (V) ... Satanist #2 *''Sweep The Leg'' (2007)... Pizza Store owner/dad *'' Ratko: The Dictator's Son'' (2008) ... Dean Sitlong *'' Ocean of Pearls'' (2008) ... Dr. Shultz *''

Robot Chicken ''Robot Chicken'' is an American adult animation, adult stop motion, stop-motion animated sketch comedy television series created by Seth Green and Matthew Senreich for Cartoon Network's nighttime programming block Adult Swim. The twelve-minute ...

'' (TV series) (V) ... Jigsaw / Mr. Belding / Judge *''Private High Musical'' (2008)... Mr. Johnson *''Stacy's Mom'' (2008) ... Professor Wood *''Creative Differences'' (2008) ... Tom *''The Legend of Awesomest Maximus'' (2008) ... Father Jay *''Acting School Academy'' (Web Series) (2009)... Martin DeWitt *''

Men Of A Certain Age ''Men of a Certain Age'' is an American comedy-drama television series created by Ray Romano and Mike Royce, that ran on TNT from December 7, 2009, to July 6, 2011. The hour-long program stars Romano, Andre Braugher, and Scott Bakula as thre ...

'' (TV Series) (2010)... Terry's Landlord *''See You In Shell'', Music Video by iwrestledabearonce (2010) *''Neighborhood Watch'' (Web Series) (2010)... Principal Gibbous *''Z! True Long Island Story'' (Web Series) (2011–2013)... Himself/Mr. Belding *''

Victorious ''Victorious'' (stylized as ''VICTORiOUS'') is an American sitcom created by Dan Schneider that originally aired on Nickelodeon, debuting on March 27, 2010, and concluding on February 2, 2013 after four seasons. The series revolves around aspi ...

'' (TV Series) (2012)... Mr. Belding *''

Mad Men ''Mad Men'' is an American historical drama, period drama television series created by Matthew Weiner and produced by Lionsgate Television. It ran on cable network AMC (TV channel), AMC from July 19, 2007, to May 17, 2015, with seven seasons ...

'' (TV Series) (2012)...

Cool Whip Cool Whip is an American brand of whipped topping manufactured by Kraft Heinz. It is used in North America as a topping for desserts, and in some no-bake pie recipes as a convenience food or ingredient that does not require physical whipping ...

Test kitchen A test kitchen is a kitchen used for the process of developing new kinds of food. On the largest scale, they are run by the research and development departments of large companies in the food industry. Other test kitchens are owned by individuals ...

scientist A scientist is a person who Scientific method, researches to advance knowledge in an Branches of science, area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, philosophers engag ...

*''

How I Met Your Mother ''How I Met Your Mother'' (often abbreviated as ''HIMYM'') is an American sitcom created by Craig Thomas (screenwriter), Craig Thomas and Carter Bays for CBS. The series, which aired from September 19, 2005, to March 31, 2014, follows main char ...

'' (TV Series) (2012)... Judge #2 *''The JBL and Cole Show'' (Web Series) (2013)... Himself *''

'' (2014) ... Snake Oil Salesman *''

New Girl ''New Girl'' is an American television sitcom created by Elizabeth Meriwether and produced by 20th Century Fox Television for Fox that aired from September 20, 2011, to May 15, 2018. The series revolves around quirky teacher, Jessica Day ( Zo ...

'' (2014) ... Santa *''Up on the Wooftop'' (2015)... Santa Claus *''

Hot in Cleveland ''Hot in Cleveland'' is an American television sitcom aired on TV Land and starring Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves, Wendie Malick, and Betty White. The series, which was TV Land's first original series, premiered on June 16, 2010, and was ...

'' (2015)... Reverend Bower *''

The Tonight Show ''The Tonight Show'' is an American late-night talk show that has been broadcast on NBC since 1954. The program has been hosted by six comedians: Steve Allen (1954–1957), Jack Paar (1957–1962), Johnny Carson (1962–1992), Jay Leno (1992–2 ...

'' (2015)... Mr. Richard Belding *''Holly, Jingles and Clyde'' (2017) ... Santa Claus *'' Bennett's Song'' (2018)...Gpa Sam Bennett *''

Abstruse In philosophy, obscurantism or obscurationism is the Anti-intellectualism, anti-intellectual practice of deliberately presenting information in an wikt:abstruse, abstruse and imprecise manner that limits further inquiry and understanding of a subj ...

'' (2019)...Senator Stevens *'' Enigma'' (2019)...Bob Jenkins *''

Clemency A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the j ...

'' (2019)... Mr. Collins *'' A Bennett Song Holiday'' (2020)...Gpa Sam Bennett

Awards

Haskins was honored with The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga's Most Distinguished Alumni of 2000 award and has a regional high school academic decathlon named after him, The Dennis Haskins Open, now in its eleventh year.

References

External links

* *
Dennis Haskins
at

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

2003 Interview with Dennis Haskins

Review of a college performance by Haskins.

Dennis Haskins' karaoke album at Lucky Voice Blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Haskins, Dennis 1950 births 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors American male film actors American male television actors Living people Male actors from Chattanooga, Tennessee