Yahoo Lifestyle Producer Behind Popular '90s Franchise Dies at 88
Peter Engel, who was the executive producer of the popular sitcom franchise Saved by the Bell and its multiple spinoffs, died at the age of 88.
He died on Tuesday, March 4, at his home in Santa Monica, Calif., with his death confirmed by his family to Deadline. No cause of death was shared.
The late producer was behind the entire run of the Saved by the Bell franchise, starting with the original show that ran from 1989 to 1993 that starred Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Tiffani Thiessen, Elizabeth Berkley, Mario Lopez, Lark Voorhies, and the late Dustin Diamond, who died in 2021.
Engel also executive produced the spinoffs Saved by the Bell: The College Years and Saved by the Bell: The New Class, as well as two TV movies, Saved by the Bell: Hawaiian Style and Saved by the Bell: Wedding in Las Vegas. Years later, he returned to the world of Saved by the Bell for the short-lived reboot that aired on Peacock from 2020 to 2021.
But Saved by the Bell wasn't Engel's only successful project, as he also executive produced long-running shows California Dreams; USA High; Malibu, CA; Hang Time; City Guys; and the talent competition show Last Comic Standing.
Engel was nominated for a Daytime Emmy for Saved by the Bell: The New Class and a Primetime Emmy for Last Comic Standing.
In an interview with Pop City Life in 2017, Engel talked about his work as an executive producer, saying, "One show is a full-time job. I wrote, I produced, I led, I would be in editing, music. I had six shows at one point from 1996 to 2001. Nine seasons of Last Comic Standing – that was just a fun show." He called working on Saved by the Bell "the time of my life."
Engel released a memoir about his life and work in the entertainment industry in 2016 called I Was Saved by the Bell: Stories of Life, Love, and Dreams That Do Come True.
