"It’s the best decade ever."
Before Elizabeth Berkley, Mark Paul Gosselaar and Mario Lopez took the stage Sunday at the Tampa Convention Center, a special announcement played over the loudspeaker for fans who’d packed the conference room to see the “Saved by the Bell” stars.
Due to the ongoing strike by writers and actors, it said, the actors on stage would not be permitted to reference shows or characters by name, so as not to violate union rules.
Luckily this was a crowd that had shown up wearing Bayside High School T-shirts and carrying “Vote for Zack” campaign signs — knowing references to the classic Saturday morning TV series. They had no trouble following along when the stars referenced “the show” they were on from 1989 to 1993.
In fact, when Berkley noted that she was “so excited” to be taking part in the panel — a subtle wink to one of the most famous (and truly unhinged) moments of “Saved by the Bell” — the crowd exploded in laughter.
The “Saved by the Bell” panel was part of the final day of 90s Con, a three-day convention celebrating the pop culture of the 1990s, with some of the decade’s most memorable TV actors and musicians in attendance. It was a day for nostalgia and looking back, so it was hardly a speedbump when Gosselaar had to stay silent when someone brought up the new NBC series in which he plays a sinister kidnapper.
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