Screech Actor Wasn’t Killed in a Prison Riot, Saved by the Bell Star’s Death Is Fake News
No need to worry, Saved by the Bell star Dustin Diamond is alive and well. Earlier this week, it had been reported that Diamond was killed in a prison riot. A satirical website ran the headline: “Saved by the Bell‘s Dustin ‘Screech’ Diamond Killed In Prison Riot At Age 43,” and it spread like wildfire all over social media. Thankfully, Diamond is just the latest victim of a death hoax, which is far from the first hoax he has been attached to over the years.
The fake story about Dustin Diamon’s death alleged that he was serving a “15-year sentence for a stabbing that happened after someone criticized his comedic skills and heckled him at a comedy club.” It’s hard to imagine why anybody would think that was the truth, as it seems made for laughs. Diamond has tried his hand at comedy over the years, along with a ton of other ventures, but he did not recently stab someone at a comedy club.
Dustin Diamond is not currently incarcerated. He was previously sentenced to four months in jail back in 2014 for his part in a stabbing during a Christmas Day altercation at a bar. He was later released after three months and given probation. Diamond’s very public personal life has been a bit erratic, which unfortunately leads to death hoaxes and other false reports. He released his own sex tape, titled Screeched: Saved By the Smell, though he later claimed he used a body double. He also wrote a memoir, Behind the Bell, about his time on Saved by the Bell, which alienated him from the rest of his fellow cast members with stories they all claim to be false. Diamond later apologized for the book.
The stabbing incident originally led to a hoax that stated Dustin Diamond had actually killed a man. But as far as his death is concerned, there have been others. Diamond said, “Some things people say are loosely based on the truth and others are entirely fake. One of the craziest was I was supposedly on the back of a motorcycle with Mark-Paul Gosselaar in New Zealand, and while we were going down the freeway an overpass collapsed and I was beheaded. I mean, that was some tall tale.” There were rumors during Saved by the Bell that he was related to Beastie Boys rapper Michael Diamond, but those were obviously proven to be false.
Saved by the Bell has a reboot series on the way, which features original cast members Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Elizabeth Berkley, Mario Lopez, and Tiffani Thiessen. Dustin Diamond and Lark Voorhies, who played Lisa Turtle, were not invited to participate. For Diamond, he is hurt that Screech was not invited to participate, but he knows the reason why he was not asked to return. “I have to admit I did feel a bit slighted and hurt,” said Voorhies. Reuters was the first to debunk the death of Dustin Diamond.
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