A photo of Dustin Diamond. (Image courtesy: dustindiamondofficial)
Highlights
- “Dustin did not suffer,” the actor’s agent said
- “He does not have to be in pain,” the agent added.
- Diamond begins his career with ‘Good Morning, Miss Bliss’
New York:
American actor Dustin Diamond, best known for portraying the nerdy Screech in the hit TV series Saved by the clock, died Monday, his agent said a few weeks after being diagnosed with aggressive cancer. He was 44. ‘He was only diagnosed three weeks ago with this cruel, relentless form of malignant cancer. In time, it managed to spread rapidly in its system, ‘agent Roger Paul told AFP. “Dustin did not suffer. He does not have to lie in pain. For that we are grateful.” Diamond, a Californian, began his career with Good morning, Miss Bliss, a series about junior high school students that lasted only one season, but which produced Stored by the clock.
Dustin Diamond’s Screech character was transported to the fictional Bayside High School in California along with several others for Clock, which aired four seasons, beginning in 1989.
The light-hearted display of the highs and lows of adolescence was popular in the United States and abroad.
Diamond’s unpredictable Samuel “Screech” Powers was the perfect film for Mark-Paul Gosselaar’s Zack Morris.
Though he was a major reason for the program’s success, Diamond’s career did not begin thereafter.
– ‘You will be missed’ –
Unlike some Saved by the clock made spinoffs and movies for television, he rarely worked in small roles.
In 2009, his book for everything“Behind the clock contains some juicy stories behind the scenes of the set – but Diamond later admitted that it was full of fabricated anecdotes.
In 2015, he was sentenced to four months in prison for carrying a concealed weapon and disorderly conduct in connection with a stabbing at a bar.
He was released from prison a month early in 2016 for good behavior.
For the past few years, Diamond has worked as a stand-up comedian and appeared in several reality TV shows.
“We know Dustin is not considered by most people. He has had a history of accidents, unfortunate events,” his agent said Monday.
“We want the public to understand that he was not intentionally malicious. (…) His actions, although reprimanded, stemmed from loss and the lack of knowledge on how to properly process the pain.”
Last year, when the rest of the Saved by the clock thrown reunited for another recharge, Diamond does not appear.
His former co-stars paid tribute to him on Monday.
“Deeply sad to hear of the passing of Dustin Diamond, a true comic genius,” Gosselaar wrote on Twitter.
“If I look back on our time working together, I will miss those raw, brilliant sparks that only he could produce. A cake in your face, my comrade.”
Mario Lopez, who played AC Slater on Clock, added: “Dustin, you will miss my husband. The fragility of this life is something that can never be taken for granted.”
(Except for the headline, this story was not processed by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)