‘Saved by the Bell’ Creator Sam Bobrick Dead at 87

Sam Bobrick, TV writer and creator of Saved by the Bell, has passed away. The Emmy-nominated scribe was 87 years old, according to The Hollywood Reporter, and suffered from a stroke. He died on Friday.

Bobrick rushed to Northridge Hospital Medical Center in Los Angeles, California. His friend, actor Adam Carl confirmed the details of his passing to reporters. He said that Bobrick died the same day as his sudden stroke.

“Sam was, more than anything, a mensch of the highest order,” Carl said of his friend. “He was a writer who absolutely adored actors — not always a given — and appreciated the contributions they brought to the table. He was never precious or defensive about suggestions or notes; he wanted the work to be the best it could be and cherished a good idea from no matter where it came.”

“He was a delightful raconteur, a thoughtful and generous host and never saw milk he couldn’t turn into a shake. He was also wickedly and darkly funny. His humor was sometimes barbed, sometimes silly, sometimes absurdist, often self-deprecating. But this above all — he was never ever not funny,” he added.

Bobrick is survived by a large and loving family, including his wife, Julie; his daughters, Lori and Stefanie; his son, Joey; his sons-in-law Caleb and Geoff and his daughter-in-law, Linda. He also has two grandchildren, Ariel and Josh; and a beloved dog he called his “fourth child,” Albert the Wonder Pug.

Bobrick was a writer with rare flexibility and longevity in the entertainment business. A Chicago native, he was born in 1932 and began his career out of college in the ABC mailroom. From there, he cut his teeth writing for shows like Captain Kangaroo, Make Me Laugh and The Ray Bolger Show.

Bobrick’s work defied the boundaries of genre and medium. He worked as a songwriter as well, and his first work, “The Girl of My Best Friend,” was covered by Elvis Presley in 1960. Meanwhile, he was writing plays as well. He wrote four comedies that were produced for Broadway, and over 40 plays in total.

Bobrick’s most notable credits on TV include The Andy Griffith Show, The Flintstones; Gomer Pyle: USMC; Get Smart; Hey, Landlord; Good Morning, World; and Bewitched. He took all of that experience to the writer’s room when he created Saved by the Bell in the 1980s.

Saved by the Bell actually began as a show called Good Morning, Miss Bliss, which ran on the Disney Channel from 1988 to 1989. It was canceled after one season, but NBC picked it up, changing a few details and renaming it. This is how the setting moved from Indianapolis to California.

Saved by the Bell reigned for four years on the air, and spawned TV movies and spinoffs as well. A reboot series is expected out next year on NBCUniversal’s streaming service Peacock, starring Mario Lopez and Elizabeth Berkley. Bobrick is credited on the production.