Post by Erika on May 8, 2006 11:31:14 GMT -5
www.campusactivitiesmagazine.com/pages/dennishaskins.html
A full generation of kids, for eleven years, awoke bleary eyed and disoriented early every Saturday morning to all fall in front of the tube and watch NBC's Saturday morning lineup. One show held particular appeal, as the times and troubles of Zach, Kelly, Slater, Lisa, Jessie, Screech and of course Mr. Belding captivated young audiences across the nation in "Saved By The Bell."
Now, those young audiences are in college and Dennis Haskins is bringing the world of "Saved By The Bell" back to them. As a primary character in nearly every one of the several incarnations of the show, no one is better qualified to come and speak to students on campus about himself and the show.
Dennis has been in the acting profession a lot longer than many may realize and has had more notable parts than just Mr. Belding. His roots in the profession go as far back as he can remember.
"The beginning of my being an actor go back to grade school when I was growing up in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Another student and I were selected out of our sixth grade class to put on a college production of Pinnochio and that was my first experience as an actor. I loved it. I had such a good time with all of these college students that it really fired me up, but I didn't do any acting again until I made it to college, because I was playing a lot of sports."
Dennis attended the University of Tennessee in Chattanooga and while playing basketball there, enrolled in a theater class.
"My basketball coach was also my advisor and he enrolled me in that course. What he didn't realize at the time was that acting was the only other thing I wanted to do in life besides play basketball. Eventually I realized I wasn't going to go pro and immediately I changed my major to theatre."
Dennis continued to pursue acting through his study in college, but didn't get his first big break until he was out of school. He did an outdoor theatre part in a production called Louisiana Cavalier, where he was fortunate enough to get his Actor's Equity Card. Essentially this is a Union pass for stage actors. This opened many doors for Dennis.
"Because I joined Actor's Equity, I was able to join the Screen Actor's Guild (SAG). Two years later, while I was on the road with Greg Allman, I stopped in to see my agent."
The Dennis Haskins that visited his agent that day is a much different one from the fond memories of many youths of years gone by. ÒI had long hair, a mustache and a scraggly beard.Ó This prompted his agent to inform him that he would be perfect for a new show that was coming out, so Dennis auditioned. After getting the part, he filmed and appeared on the very first episode of "The Dukes Of Hazard."
"I have to say that succession of events, that little break, led up to me getting the courage to move to California and really dig in and pursue my acting career full time."
Despite the future success of "The Dukes of Hazard," at the time, the notoriety of the show was less than what Dennis may have desired. He moved to Los Angeles and would eventually do quite well, but certainly not before paying his dues, so to speak.
"It was rough. I didn't have much money or resources. I took a sleeping bag with me when I moved and slept on the floor for over two years. I was totally focused on my goals in acting and that may have hurt my financial status a bit." Dennis explains that he didn't want to have a job that would conflict with the possibility of him doing any acting work. He needed time available to pursue leads for parts, audition and work for those he got. This limited his choices in employment during this time and as a result, his income as well. "I didn't take jobs that paid a lot and worked mostly small part time stuff."
Dennis did okay for a while, working odd jobs and getting parts on occasion. He had another stroke of good fortune when he was able to do another "Dukes of Hazard" episode. Unfortunately there was an actor's strike shortly after that.
"That was hard, because it really depleted my savings. It was rough for a couple of years, but I worked through it and honestly loved every minute of it. I was living my dream. I didn't have the best of anything and in some cases the worst (laughs). Eventually, I got off the floor, purchasing my first bed at a hotel resale auction for $60. Inch by inch I got other parts and things started to happen.
Bigger and bigger opportunities found their way to Dennis, or he found his way to them, rather. "Greatest American Hero," "Magnum P.I." and "Amazing Stories" were a few of the television credits he was able to garner, further boosting his status in the acting world at the time. Eventually he was doing a musical in Santa Monica called Angry Housewives.
"It became very successful and Joan Ryan, the girl playing the part opposite me, came to me one day and recommended a show for me to audition." Joan thought Dennis would be a good fit for the program, "Good Morning, Miss Bliss." Dennis called his manager and she explained to him that unfortunately the producers of the show were looking for a guy that was black and fifty for the part. "Obviously, I wasn't either one, but eventually they changed the criteria of who they wanted because they were having trouble finding someone like the person they were looking for. Long story short, I got an audition, but didn't get the job."
Five auditions later, Dennis still hadn't had any luck getting the job and decided to call his manager. "I said 'Listen, you have to get me back in there, I know I can do a better job.' She essentially told me I had to let go of the part. Once you are with the network and are let go, you just don't go back. I simply was not willing to accept that."
Dennis took the matter into his own hands and called the executive producer of the show, Peter Engel himself. "I asked him how I did and he told me he thought it went great." Dennis talked to Peter later on and was told that phone call was the point in which the producer decided to bring him back and make him a part of the show. This was for "Good Morning, Miss Bliss" which ran 13 episodes on The Disney Channel and which NBC had taken an interest in. The network bought the rights to four of the characters from the show, revised some of the plot and created a show called "Saved By The Bell." The rest, as they say, is history.
"Saved By The Bell" in all its different forms, ran for eleven years. Dennis, as Mr. Belding was on the Saturday morning show from start to finish with the exception of the summer episodes.
"The producers decided to try to do something different with the show. They came to me and said, 'Listen, we are going to go away from the school for a few episodes and we want to see how it goes.' At first, I wasn't thrilled about that prospect because I wanted to keep rolling and making the shows. As it worked out though, they decided that "Saved By The Bell" was better off set in a school environment. It was better for the continuity, feel and flow of the show, but something did come out of the summer sessions." This "something more" was a new show called "California Dreams," a spin off of the original "Saved By The Bell" series.
So now that all of the background is filled in and we know how Dennis went from zero to hero, how does a successful actor from a Saturday morning kid's program make the jump from the screen to the college speaking stage? "It is very interesting how all of this came about and my foray into the college market is surrounded by what is honestly a great story.
"I went to Atlanta and came into contact with a lady named Robin Spizman. Robin was responsible for producing a program for TNT, TBS and CNN called "Think About It" and she would often bring in speakers. "Saved By The Bell" was helped greatly around this time by the launch of the original series going into syndication with TBS. Because of this relationship, they asked me to come in and speak to what they called their campus." The twist of fate here would become the seedling for Dennis' new career blossoming in the college market. In the audience was a student who attended the University of Wisconsin in Oshkosh, who immediately approached Dennis with a request to repeat his speech at his school. "I said, 'Well, yeah. Why don't you interview me at your school?' He said that would be great and the deal was done."
When he went to the University in Oshkosh, Dennis was pleased to discover a line an hour before the show. The room was packed and everything went off without a hitch. They even video taped the performance for him.
He showed the video of the University of Wisconsin show to college agent Joey Edmonds, a long time acquaintance from California in the world of stand up comedy. "Joey said he thought it could work and that we should try it. Dennis quickly grew to like the speaking engagements he started doing at colleges, having more and more notoriety and work being built on his previous appearances. He added a "Saved By The Bell" trivia contest and a special audience interaction question and answer session and his program quickly transformed into what it is today. Inch by inch we have worked at it and I have now done well over sixty colleges."
That was around three years ago and to this day, Dennis is kept quite busy with bookings across the country. He thoroughly enjoys his experiences on America's college campuses, for a variety of reasons. Aside from the obvious energy and enthusiasm shown by the students, he says it is nice to be able to return to the days of "Saved By The Bell" with all of those who remember and appreciated it.
"One of the nicest things for me about coming to any campus is that the students on the activities board who have brought me there don't have to tell everyone who I am, because they all remember the show. Everyone already knows, so they (the programmers) just have to let them know I am coming and the rest is pretty much automatic. When I come in, everything is pretty much handled and everyone is more than adequately prepped to see me. The generation of kids that grew up watching "Saved By The Bell" are in college now, so I have that advantage of familiarity from the start."
When Dennis comes to campus, one of the first things he does is to show a few clips of other television shows he has done in the past. "Frankly, I know I don't look like I did twenty years ago and I want them to see I have done other things. Then, we jump right into the "Saved By The Bell" opening credits and everyone sings along as I come out. Then, we are off and running."
Dennis explains that in every school he attends, he believes it is of the utmost importance to involve the students right away. The primary outlet for this is by having a member of the school be the interviewer for the show. This enables the students to not only connect with a familiar figure from television, but with someone whom they know and are comfortable with. Someone that is one of them, thereby drawing them even deeper into the show. "I like for everyone to feel like they are a part of the show."
The makeshift interviewer is given a list of sample questions just in case they get tripped up, but Dennis highly encourages them to come up with questions on their own. Dennis' show, like "Saved By The Bell," is entertainment with a message. While it is fun to talk about the show, leadership and motivational messages are just as important to pass along to the students. To see how the show progresses, reader's are highly recommended to check out Dennis Haskins as Mr. Belding on their campus and let their students experience their childhoods all over again.
As one of the most recognizable figures of the current college generation's staple childhood television programs, Mr Belding is sure to make an impact on the students at your campus. While many will recognize him as this prominent Saturday morning figure, Dennis Haskins has much more to offer as a live speaker to America's college campuses. Mr. Belding was often a moral compass for Zach, Kelly, Slater and the crew. Now give your students the same opportunity to receive some real world experience and advice from Mr. Belding's real world counterpart, Dennis Haskins.
A full generation of kids, for eleven years, awoke bleary eyed and disoriented early every Saturday morning to all fall in front of the tube and watch NBC's Saturday morning lineup. One show held particular appeal, as the times and troubles of Zach, Kelly, Slater, Lisa, Jessie, Screech and of course Mr. Belding captivated young audiences across the nation in "Saved By The Bell."
Now, those young audiences are in college and Dennis Haskins is bringing the world of "Saved By The Bell" back to them. As a primary character in nearly every one of the several incarnations of the show, no one is better qualified to come and speak to students on campus about himself and the show.
Dennis has been in the acting profession a lot longer than many may realize and has had more notable parts than just Mr. Belding. His roots in the profession go as far back as he can remember.
"The beginning of my being an actor go back to grade school when I was growing up in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Another student and I were selected out of our sixth grade class to put on a college production of Pinnochio and that was my first experience as an actor. I loved it. I had such a good time with all of these college students that it really fired me up, but I didn't do any acting again until I made it to college, because I was playing a lot of sports."
Dennis attended the University of Tennessee in Chattanooga and while playing basketball there, enrolled in a theater class.
"My basketball coach was also my advisor and he enrolled me in that course. What he didn't realize at the time was that acting was the only other thing I wanted to do in life besides play basketball. Eventually I realized I wasn't going to go pro and immediately I changed my major to theatre."
Dennis continued to pursue acting through his study in college, but didn't get his first big break until he was out of school. He did an outdoor theatre part in a production called Louisiana Cavalier, where he was fortunate enough to get his Actor's Equity Card. Essentially this is a Union pass for stage actors. This opened many doors for Dennis.
"Because I joined Actor's Equity, I was able to join the Screen Actor's Guild (SAG). Two years later, while I was on the road with Greg Allman, I stopped in to see my agent."
The Dennis Haskins that visited his agent that day is a much different one from the fond memories of many youths of years gone by. ÒI had long hair, a mustache and a scraggly beard.Ó This prompted his agent to inform him that he would be perfect for a new show that was coming out, so Dennis auditioned. After getting the part, he filmed and appeared on the very first episode of "The Dukes Of Hazard."
"I have to say that succession of events, that little break, led up to me getting the courage to move to California and really dig in and pursue my acting career full time."
Despite the future success of "The Dukes of Hazard," at the time, the notoriety of the show was less than what Dennis may have desired. He moved to Los Angeles and would eventually do quite well, but certainly not before paying his dues, so to speak.
"It was rough. I didn't have much money or resources. I took a sleeping bag with me when I moved and slept on the floor for over two years. I was totally focused on my goals in acting and that may have hurt my financial status a bit." Dennis explains that he didn't want to have a job that would conflict with the possibility of him doing any acting work. He needed time available to pursue leads for parts, audition and work for those he got. This limited his choices in employment during this time and as a result, his income as well. "I didn't take jobs that paid a lot and worked mostly small part time stuff."
Dennis did okay for a while, working odd jobs and getting parts on occasion. He had another stroke of good fortune when he was able to do another "Dukes of Hazard" episode. Unfortunately there was an actor's strike shortly after that.
"That was hard, because it really depleted my savings. It was rough for a couple of years, but I worked through it and honestly loved every minute of it. I was living my dream. I didn't have the best of anything and in some cases the worst (laughs). Eventually, I got off the floor, purchasing my first bed at a hotel resale auction for $60. Inch by inch I got other parts and things started to happen.
Bigger and bigger opportunities found their way to Dennis, or he found his way to them, rather. "Greatest American Hero," "Magnum P.I." and "Amazing Stories" were a few of the television credits he was able to garner, further boosting his status in the acting world at the time. Eventually he was doing a musical in Santa Monica called Angry Housewives.
"It became very successful and Joan Ryan, the girl playing the part opposite me, came to me one day and recommended a show for me to audition." Joan thought Dennis would be a good fit for the program, "Good Morning, Miss Bliss." Dennis called his manager and she explained to him that unfortunately the producers of the show were looking for a guy that was black and fifty for the part. "Obviously, I wasn't either one, but eventually they changed the criteria of who they wanted because they were having trouble finding someone like the person they were looking for. Long story short, I got an audition, but didn't get the job."
Five auditions later, Dennis still hadn't had any luck getting the job and decided to call his manager. "I said 'Listen, you have to get me back in there, I know I can do a better job.' She essentially told me I had to let go of the part. Once you are with the network and are let go, you just don't go back. I simply was not willing to accept that."
Dennis took the matter into his own hands and called the executive producer of the show, Peter Engel himself. "I asked him how I did and he told me he thought it went great." Dennis talked to Peter later on and was told that phone call was the point in which the producer decided to bring him back and make him a part of the show. This was for "Good Morning, Miss Bliss" which ran 13 episodes on The Disney Channel and which NBC had taken an interest in. The network bought the rights to four of the characters from the show, revised some of the plot and created a show called "Saved By The Bell." The rest, as they say, is history.
"Saved By The Bell" in all its different forms, ran for eleven years. Dennis, as Mr. Belding was on the Saturday morning show from start to finish with the exception of the summer episodes.
"The producers decided to try to do something different with the show. They came to me and said, 'Listen, we are going to go away from the school for a few episodes and we want to see how it goes.' At first, I wasn't thrilled about that prospect because I wanted to keep rolling and making the shows. As it worked out though, they decided that "Saved By The Bell" was better off set in a school environment. It was better for the continuity, feel and flow of the show, but something did come out of the summer sessions." This "something more" was a new show called "California Dreams," a spin off of the original "Saved By The Bell" series.
So now that all of the background is filled in and we know how Dennis went from zero to hero, how does a successful actor from a Saturday morning kid's program make the jump from the screen to the college speaking stage? "It is very interesting how all of this came about and my foray into the college market is surrounded by what is honestly a great story.
"I went to Atlanta and came into contact with a lady named Robin Spizman. Robin was responsible for producing a program for TNT, TBS and CNN called "Think About It" and she would often bring in speakers. "Saved By The Bell" was helped greatly around this time by the launch of the original series going into syndication with TBS. Because of this relationship, they asked me to come in and speak to what they called their campus." The twist of fate here would become the seedling for Dennis' new career blossoming in the college market. In the audience was a student who attended the University of Wisconsin in Oshkosh, who immediately approached Dennis with a request to repeat his speech at his school. "I said, 'Well, yeah. Why don't you interview me at your school?' He said that would be great and the deal was done."
When he went to the University in Oshkosh, Dennis was pleased to discover a line an hour before the show. The room was packed and everything went off without a hitch. They even video taped the performance for him.
He showed the video of the University of Wisconsin show to college agent Joey Edmonds, a long time acquaintance from California in the world of stand up comedy. "Joey said he thought it could work and that we should try it. Dennis quickly grew to like the speaking engagements he started doing at colleges, having more and more notoriety and work being built on his previous appearances. He added a "Saved By The Bell" trivia contest and a special audience interaction question and answer session and his program quickly transformed into what it is today. Inch by inch we have worked at it and I have now done well over sixty colleges."
That was around three years ago and to this day, Dennis is kept quite busy with bookings across the country. He thoroughly enjoys his experiences on America's college campuses, for a variety of reasons. Aside from the obvious energy and enthusiasm shown by the students, he says it is nice to be able to return to the days of "Saved By The Bell" with all of those who remember and appreciated it.
"One of the nicest things for me about coming to any campus is that the students on the activities board who have brought me there don't have to tell everyone who I am, because they all remember the show. Everyone already knows, so they (the programmers) just have to let them know I am coming and the rest is pretty much automatic. When I come in, everything is pretty much handled and everyone is more than adequately prepped to see me. The generation of kids that grew up watching "Saved By The Bell" are in college now, so I have that advantage of familiarity from the start."
When Dennis comes to campus, one of the first things he does is to show a few clips of other television shows he has done in the past. "Frankly, I know I don't look like I did twenty years ago and I want them to see I have done other things. Then, we jump right into the "Saved By The Bell" opening credits and everyone sings along as I come out. Then, we are off and running."
Dennis explains that in every school he attends, he believes it is of the utmost importance to involve the students right away. The primary outlet for this is by having a member of the school be the interviewer for the show. This enables the students to not only connect with a familiar figure from television, but with someone whom they know and are comfortable with. Someone that is one of them, thereby drawing them even deeper into the show. "I like for everyone to feel like they are a part of the show."
The makeshift interviewer is given a list of sample questions just in case they get tripped up, but Dennis highly encourages them to come up with questions on their own. Dennis' show, like "Saved By The Bell," is entertainment with a message. While it is fun to talk about the show, leadership and motivational messages are just as important to pass along to the students. To see how the show progresses, reader's are highly recommended to check out Dennis Haskins as Mr. Belding on their campus and let their students experience their childhoods all over again.
As one of the most recognizable figures of the current college generation's staple childhood television programs, Mr Belding is sure to make an impact on the students at your campus. While many will recognize him as this prominent Saturday morning figure, Dennis Haskins has much more to offer as a live speaker to America's college campuses. Mr. Belding was often a moral compass for Zach, Kelly, Slater and the crew. Now give your students the same opportunity to receive some real world experience and advice from Mr. Belding's real world counterpart, Dennis Haskins.
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