Editing Saved by the Bell (section)

==Characters==
{{main|List of Saved by the Bell characters}}

In casting ''[[Good Morning, Miss Bliss]]'', [[Peter Engel]] knew the success of the show would not hinge on Miss Bliss herself, but on her students. Engel particularly envisioned one character, [[Zack Morris (Saved by the Bell)|Zack Morris]], who "would be that incorrigible kid who could lie to your face, letting you know very well that he's lying, and make you love him for it all the same."<ref name="Engel 159-161" /> Engel insisted that the show could not go on without Zack Morris, but he turned out to be one of the most difficult characters to cast. Engel's casting director, Shana Landsburg, finally happened across fourteen-year old [[Mark-Paul Gosselaar]] and was immediately struck by the teen's charisma, charm, and good looks. After a quick read-through, Gosselaar was immediately given the role.<ref name="Engel 159-161" />

After casting Zack Morris, the next character sought after was Morris's nerdy friend, Samuel "Screech" Powers. Gosselaar was asked to read through the script with a number of kids, and a second audition was scheduled for finalists. It was Gosselaar himself who insisted that [[Dustin Diamond]] was right for the part as he believed Diamond was Screech in real life. After reading through the script, Diamond was given the part, although Engel later found out that he had misread his head shot and Diamond was considerably younger than the rest of the cast—a fact that, had he been aware, might have prevented Engel from casting him.<ref name="Engel 161-163">Engel (2016), pp. 161–163</ref>

Lisa Turtle was originally conceived as a [[Jewish American Princess|rich Jewish princess]] from [[Long Island]], spoiled, materialistic, and obsessed with shopping. While still casting for the role, actress [[Lark Voorhies]] was brought into Engel's office, and he immediately knew she was perfect for the role despite the fact that it meant rewriting the character.<ref name="Engel 180-184">Engel (2016), pp. 180–184</ref><ref name="E! True Hollywood Story" />

The school principal, Mr. Gerald Belding, as originally conceived on ''Good Morning, Miss Bliss'', was an older, humorless man, and was played in the 1987 pilot by character actor [[Oliver Clark]].<ref name="E! True Hollywood Story" /><ref name="GMMB Pilot">{{cite episode|title=Pilot|series=Good Morning, Miss Bliss|credits= [[Sam Bobrick]] (writer) & [[Peter Bonerz]] (director) |network=NBC|airdate=July 11, 1987}}</ref> After the show was retooled for [[Disney Channel]], the character's first name was changed to Richard and he was recast, with [[Dennis Haskins]] ultimately winning the role. Mr. Belding was rewritten to be significantly younger and to have a much different sense of humor.<ref name="E! True Hollywood Story" />

When ''Good Morning, Miss Bliss'' was retooled as ''Saved by the Bell'', four actors and their respective characters from the original series were brought over to the new series: Gosselaar, Diamond, Voorhies, and Haskins. The rest of the cast was fired, and Engel sought to replace them with new characters who would complement the old ones.<ref name="Engel 169-173">Engel (2016), pp. 169–173</ref>

[[Image:SavedbytheBell3.jpg|thumb|left|250px|The cast of ''Saved by the Bell'', clockwise from left: Screech, Slater, Lisa, Mr. Belding, Jessie, Zack, and Kelly]]
The first of the new characters, A.C. Slater, was conceived as a young [[John Travolta]] type who would be an [[Military brat (U.S. subculture)|army brat]] and wear a leather jacket. He was originally conceived of as [[Italian Americans|Italian-American]]. However, when all efforts to cast the character were unsuccessful, Engel asked that the part be opened up to other ethnicities. Two days later, [[Mario Lopez]], a dancer and drummer of [[Latinos|Latino]] descent from ''[[Kids Incorporated]]'', auditioned for the role. Lopez was judged the best actor who auditioned, and was cast.<ref name="Engel 169-173" />

For Kelly Kapowski, the love interest of both Zack and Slater, producers were able to narrow the field down to three actresses: [[Tiffani Thiessen|Tiffani-Amber Thiessen]], [[Elizabeth Berkley]], and Thiessen's future ''[[Beverly Hills 90210]]'' co-star, [[Jennie Garth]]. Engel had originally met Thiessen in 1988 while casting for ''Good Morning, Miss Bliss'' and was impressed with how much her acting had improved. He wanted her for the role, believing she had the perfect all-American girl appeal for the role, while others felt that Berkley, as the more experienced actress, would be a more reliable choice. Ultimately, Engel convinced the others after a read-through with Lopez, and Thiessen received the role.<ref name="Engel 169-173" /><ref name="E! True Hollywood Story" />

Engel and the other producers did not want to lose Berkley, however, as she was the strongest actress they had seen during casting. Berkley originally auditioned for the role of Karen, a love-interest of Zack's on ''Good Morning, Miss Bliss'', but lost the role because she was so much taller than Gosselaar at the time. Engel believed that, now that her height was more even with the rest of the cast, she could be perfect. They were not having much luck in casting the third new character, Jessie Spano, who was conceived as a strong, [[feminism|feminist]] activist and a straight-A student, so Engel suggested offering the role to Berkley, who gladly accepted it.<ref name="Engel 169-173" /><ref name="E! True Hollywood Story" />

Rounding out the new cast was real-life [[Magic (illusion)|magician]] [[Ed Alonzo]] as Max, the owner of the gang's frequent cafe hangout, The Max, who frequently performed magic tricks.<ref name="Ed Alonzo">{{Cite web | url = http://edalonzo.com/about/ | title = About Ed Alonzo | publisher = Ed Alonzo | access-date = April 2, 2017 | archive-date = November 15, 2020 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20201115204110/http://edalonzo.com/about/ | url-status = live }}</ref> Alonzo's role, however, would ultimately only last through the end of the first season, and he left after a single guest appearance during season two.<ref name="Save the Max">{{cite episode|title=Save the Max|series=Saved by the Bell|credits= Gary Goldstein (writer) & [[Don Barnhart]] (director) |network=NBC|airdate=September 22, 1990|season= 2}}</ref>

In 1992, ''Saved by the Bell'' unexpectedly received an order for an additional eleven episodes to be shot after the graduation episode. However, Thiessen and Berkley had already decided to leave the show. Though producers knew they could not replace Kelly and Jessie, they also knew they could not leave Lisa as the only girl on the show. A new character, Tori Scott, was created as a cool but pretty biker girl who would also serve as a love interest for Zack and also act as a nemesis for him initially. [[Leanna Creel]] was cast for the part. Rather than develop a second new character, the producers decided to rely more on minor recurring characters such as Ginger, Ox, and Big Pete.<ref name="Engel 220-224">Engel (2016), pp. 220–224</ref>