Dustin Diamond, who played Screech in Saved by the Bell, dies from lung cancer aged 44 - ABC News

Saved by the Bell star Dustin Diamond has died after a three-week fight with cancer. He was 44.

Key points:

• Diamond was best known for playing Screech on the hit 90s sitcom
• He was hospitalised last month in Florida and his team disclosed later that he had cancer
• Diamond starred in a handful of reality television series and had run-ins with the law

"Dustin did not suffer. He did not have to lie submerged in pain. For that, we are grateful," the actor's spokesman Roger Paul said in a statement.

"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."

Diamond, best known for playing Screech on the hit 90s sitcom, was hospitalised last month in Florida and his team disclosed later that he had cancer.

Diamond played Samuel Powers, better known as Screech, in the television series Saved by the Bell.(AP: Paul Drinkwater/NBCU)

Former co-star Mario Lopez took to Twitter to say farewell.

"Dustin, you will be missed, my man. The fragility of this life is something never to be taken for granted," he posted.

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Another co-star, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, called Diamond "a true comedic genius", adding, "I will miss those raw, brilliant sparks that only he was able to produce".

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Saved by the Bell aired from 1989 to 1993, and its related shows included Saved by the Bell: The College Years, Good Morning, Miss Bliss and Saved by the Bell: The New Class, which Diamond starred in.

A sequel was launched on US streaming service Peacock in November featuring many from the original cast, including Gosselaar, Lopez, Elizabeth Berkley and Tiffani Thiessen.

Diamond was not included.

Diamond starred in a handful of reality television series including the fifth season of Celebrity Fit Club, The Weakest Link and Celebrity Boxing 2.

In December 2013, Diamond appeared on an episode of OWN's Where Are They Now? and became a house member in the 12th season of Celebrity Big Brother.

Diamond was sued several times for unpaid 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.

AP

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2021-02-01 21:49:00Z
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