'Saved by the Bell': Where Are They Now?

July 15, 2010— -- Who can forget the fresh-faced students of Bayside High from the 1980s hit show "Saved by the Bell?"

Well, they are all grown up and having kids of their own. Just recently, one of the show's stars, Mario Lopez, now the host of "Extra," announced that VH1 has greenlighted a reality show following him and his pregnant girlfriend, Courtney Mazza, as they prepare for the birth of their child.

"Our audience has grown up with Mario. They have watched him go from a kid in a fictional high school to a man who has succeeded in many different facets in the TV business. We're thrilled that we get to be a part of his next transition into fatherhood," Jeff Olde, VH1's Executive Vice President of Original Programming and Production, told "Extra."

Indeed, a whole generation of teens and tweens grew up on the escapdes of Lopez, now 36, and his fellow Bayside students. "Bell," which premiered Saturday mornings in the late '80s and wrapped in 1994, also launched the careers of Elizabeth Berkley, Tiffani Thiessen, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Lark Voorhies and Dustin Diamond.

While the show's squeaky-clean story lines were tame compared to today's teen hits like "Gossip Girl," the real lives of the cast members became fodder for the tabloids and gossip magazines.

Diamond, now 33, went from class geek to porn star when a 2006 sex tape of him and two women in wedding garb was released. In 2009, he released the tell-all book "Behind the Bell" about sexual escapades, drug use, and hardcore partying among cast members.

It's no surprise that Diamond is no longer close to the cast. When the stars reunited for a People magazine cover shoot shortly before his book's release, Diamond was noticeably absent. The others have reportedly stayed in close touch.

Here's the latest on Lopez, Diamond and the others:

Mario Lopez/A.C. Slater

Mario Lopez may not have A.C. Slater's trademark parachute pants or jheri curl anymore, but that hasn't stopped him from keeping busy since he left Bayside.

Entertainment Weekly's website dubbed him one of the "scrappiest" people in show business after the announcement of his reality show.

After reprising his role in the "Bell" college spinoff, Lopez starred in the USA Network series "Pacific Blue" and did a slew of hosting gigs. He made a TV comeback in 2006 after finishing second on "Dancing With the Stars," and hit Broadway in 2008 to star in "A Chorus Line." That same year, he was named permanent weekday host of "Extra" and published a fitness book showing how he got his famous abs.

Mark-Paul Gosselaar/Zack Morris

The golden boy of the show, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, now 36, had trouble saying goodbye to his character, prankster Zack Morris. He reprised his role for the college years spin-off, which lasted only one season, and the series' made-for-TV movies, including "Wedding in Las Vegas," in which Zach and Kelly (Thiessen) culminate their on-again-off-again romance in marriage.

Gosselaar returned to the spotlight in 1998's "Dead Man on Campus" but failed to gain momentum in Hollywood. After the short-lived TV series "Hyperion Bay," Gosselaar finally moved beyond Zack Morris when he took on the role of Detective John Clark on "NYPD Blue" from 2001 to 2005. "Blue" creator Steven Bocho cast him in his 2008 legal drama "Raising the Bar" on TNT, but the show lasted only one season.

While Gosselaar's career is looking brighter -- he's shooting a new TNT series, "Franklin & Bash" -- his marriage is not doing so well. On June 18, he filed for divorce from his wife Lisa Ann Russell, according to People. The couple have two children, Michael Charles, 6, and Ava Lorenn, 4.

As for Zach, there may be hope with Kelly -- if Jimmy Fallon has his way. Fallon, the late-night host, has been trying to organize a "class reunion" since last year. So far, Gosselaar, Voorhies, Berkley, Lopez and Dennis Haskins, who played Bayside's principal, have signed on. Tiffani Thiessen posted a parody video on the website Funny or Die, claiming she was too busy to participate.

Tiffani Thiessen/Kelly Kapowski

Tiffani-Amber Thiessen (she later dropped the Amber) played the popular cheerleader at Bayside and Zach's on-again-off-again girlfriend. Diamond claims in his book that the on-screen couple carried on a romance in real life as well.

When the series ended, Thiessen moved to a more seductive ZIP code, "90210," to play the manipulative vixen Valerie Malone. Thiessen and co-star Brian Austin Green began a seven-year romance before Thiessen left the series in 1998. Green recently married another bright-eyed brunette beauty, Megan Fox.

In addition to a memorable role as Honey DeLune opposite Tim Meadows in 2000's "The Ladies Man," Thiessen played Billie on the short-lived series "Fastlane." Her most recent role on "What About Brian" was cut short when the series was canceled. Now 36, Thiessen, who is married to actor Brady Smith, has switced her focus to motherhood since giving birth to a daughter, Harper Renn Smith, in June.Elizabeth Berkley/Jessie Spano

After "Saved by the Bell," Elizabeth Berkley, who played Jessie Spano, shed her goodie-two-shoes reputation -- as well as her clothes -- when she starred as stripper Nomi Malone in 1995's "Showgirls."

While the critically panned role didn't catapult her to big-screen stardom, she followed it with a string of film appearances in "The First Wives Club," "The Real Blonde" and Woody Allen's "The Curse of the Jade Scorpion" and a series of stage appearances that earned her praise from critics.

Following in the footsteps of fellow Bayside alum Lopez, Berkley hosted Bravo's popular but shortlived "Step It Up and Dance" in 2008. Since then, she has starred on multiple episodes of "CSI: Miami" and Showtime's "The L Word."

Berkley, now 37, is married to designer Ralph Lauren's nephew, artist Greg Lauren.

Lark Voorhies/Lisa Turtle

Lark Voorhies didn't follow in the fashionable footsteps of her onscreen alter ego Lisa Turtle, but she did find mild success on the soap opera circuit on "Days of Our Lives" and "The Bold and the Beautiful."

She also scored stints on "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air," "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine," and "In the House." Voorhies was often cast as the object of affection in music videos (notably for artists Dru Hill and Boys II Men) and comedies ("How to be a Player" and "How High").

Following a three-year romance with "Bell" co-star Gosselaar, Voorhies was briefly engaged to comic Martin Lawrence. Now 36, she ended her eight-year marriage to Miguel Coleman in 2004 and told OK! magazine in 2007 that she now spends her time writing screenplays. But don't count her out on screen just yet; Voorhies was recently rumored to be playing Whitney Houston in an upcoming biopic.

Dustin Diamond/Screech Powers

Dustin Diamond hung around the Bayside High School halls well after his class had graduated. He starred in "Saved by the Bell: The New Class."

After nearly 13 years playing Screech Powers, Diamond found work on reality TV. He delivered a knockout performance in the ring on "Celebrity Boxing" against "Welcome Back, Kotter" star Ron Palilo but wasn't quite as successful at unpacking the pounds on "Celebrity Fit Club."

Other than his sex tape and tell-all book, Diamond has made headlines recently for his legal troubles. In 2006, he claimed he was broke and facing foreclosure and sold $15 T-shirts to try to save his home. Later, it was discovered the whole thing was a publicity stunt, but earlier this year, Wells Fargo claimed Diamond was $290,000 behind in mortgage payments and began foreclosure proceedings.

Dennis Haskins/Mr. Belding

Actor Dennis Haskins rode out the "Saved by the Bell" wave with Dustin Diamond until 2000, playing the principal Mr. Belding.

Unable to shake his principal persona, Haskins hit the college tour circuit, giving presentations and mocking his Mr. Belding role on "The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson" in early 2007. Still, he has made it clear to Jimmy Fallon that he would gladly reprise the role if given the chance.