Saved by Bell Star’s Death Certificate Cites Parkinson’s

Parkinson’s disease was listed as the immediate cause of death on Dennis Haskins’ death certificate, the document TMZ obtained from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. He was 75. The certificate fixed the end at Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center in Burbank on September 27, 2026, and named four other significant conditions: irritable bowel syndrome, depression, hypertension, and benign prostatic hyperplasia.

No one knew he had been battling Parkinson’s before he died. The diagnosis came in 2018. He told almost no one.

The first public account arrived through the Instagram page of Dimples Karaoke, the Burbank bar Haskins had frequented and where Snow had worked as a bartender until it closed in 2014. In words attributed to her, the post set the ending down without ceremony:

"Late last night, that journey ended for him. He is now at peace and is probably entertaining the people in the sky. Just know that if you tried to reach out to him in the last few years, I did read your messages to him, and you were heard."

The same post, in words attributed to Snow, put the reason for the silence in his own phrasing. “About eight years ago, he became ill. He had been silent about his fight with Parkinson’s, among other health concerns, because he did not want the attention. He did not want to have to tell people. He would say, ‘What do I even say?’ So I respected his wishes and stayed quiet, and I helped him through his journey into the next chapter of his life.”

His ex-wife, Sarah Quinones, later told TMZ how completely he sealed the circle. He stopped returning calls and texts from her and from other close friends so the diagnosis would stay hidden. He spent those final years in an assisted-living facility. The last time cameras caught him in public was December 29, 2018, at Staples Center—later Crypto.com Arena—for a Los Angeles Clippers game against the San Antonio Spurs. After that night the silence held until the people who had once stood with him on the Bayside set learned he was gone.

Dennis Haskins was born November 18, 1950, in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He played Principal Richard Belding first on Good Morning, Miss Bliss from 1988 to 1989, then through Saved by the Bell on NBC from 1989 to 1993, and again on Saved by the Bell: The New Class from 1993 to 2000. Viewers called him America’s favorite principal. The line they kept was his: “Hey, hey, hey, what is going on here?” Off the set he stayed near a microphone. In 2009 he released Karaoke with Your Favorite Principal Dennis, covering songs from “Piano Man” to “Mustang Sally.”

Jay Schachter, his agent and friend for more than twenty years, said what the loss felt like from the inside:

"It's a tragic loss. Everyone loved Mr. Belding and those of us who got to know Dennis, loved him even more. He was a great person, and he loved, I mean absolutely LOVED his fans. He always had time for them, no matter what. He was my client and dear friend for over 20 years, and I will miss him terribly. I'm heartbroken."

Mario Lopez put the loss in the language of the set they had shared. “Heartbroken to hear about my old friend Dennis Haskins. He played the principal, but Dennis was the biggest kid on the SBTB set. If you knew him, you loved him — and if there was karaoke, you knew Dennis was getting on that mic! I'm grateful for the laughs, the memories, and the friendship we shared all these years. Rest easy, my friend. You'll always be part of our Bayside family.”

Tiffani Thiessen wrote that he had been a steady presence in her teenage years, the kind of figure who kept the cast in line while making sure they knew he was in their corner. She said she would always remember his kindness and be grateful for the memories they got to share. “RIP Mr. B.” Lark Voorhies marked nearly forty years with him as one of the truest blessings of her life, and the depth of the hurt that came with losing him. Through all of it, she wrote, he remained a fabulous person, a loyal friend, and someone with such a kind, gentle heart. The circle had already lost one of its own: Dustin Diamond, who played Screech, died in 2021 at forty-four from cancer.

After the final goodbyes, Kimberly Snow signed paperwork. She looked up. The room Dennis Haskins had been in was a gift from the Mario Lopez Golf Classic.

The discovery entered the Dimples Karaoke Instagram statement in words attributed to her, kept in the order the night delivered it. “After I said my final goodbyes to him last night, I was across the hall signing some paperwork. I looked up and saw that the room he had been in was a gift from the Mario Lopez Golf Classic, and somehow, that made me feel a little better. What a cool and amazing life he had. Rest in peace, Dennis. You were very much loved and will never be forgotten.”