Peter Engel, executive producer of “Saved By The Bell” and “Last Comic Standing,” among other NBC shows, died on Tuesday at his home in Santa Monica, Calif. He was 88. His family confirmed his passing to Variety. No cause of death was provided at the time.
The producer was born in Manhattan in 1936 and would have a career producing over 1,000 television episodes. Some of the shows included teen sitcoms such as “Hang Time,” “USA High,” and “California Dreams.” One of Engel’s crown jewels was “Saved By The Bell,” which ran from 1989-1992.
The concept was initially born from “Good Morning, Miss Bliss,” originally aired on the Disney Channel from 1988-1989. “Saved By The Bell” was a reworking of the original show, choosing to focus more on the students of Bayside rather than from the teacher’s perspective.
Engel also produced the reality competition show, “Last Comic Standing,” first airing from 2003-2010 and again from 2014 to 2015. He would earn a primetime Emmy nomination for the show in 2004. Before his passing, the producer also published a memoir named “I Was Saved By The Bell: Stories of Life, Love, and Dreams that Do Come True,” chronicling his career.
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Murjani Rawls may be reached at mrawls@njadvancemedia.com