I was Saved By The Bell when my California Dreams came true as my teen-age self entered the world of Bayside High while talking with Executive TV Producer Peter Engel, who just released his memoir I Was Saved By The Bell.
It’s a real honor to be able to speak to the man behind some of my favorite Saturday morning TV series including Saved By The Bell, California Dreams, and USA High.
These shows were my salvation during my teenage years. In fact, I got to audition for USA High through a local mall contest when I was living in Massachusetts, where its leading stars, Josh Holland (Jackson Green) and Thomas Magiar (Christian Mueller) were part of the contest. I even had the opportunity to do a table read with Thomas, and meet Josh.
Call Me Adam’s Adam Rothenberg doing a table read
with USA High’s Thomas Magiar, 1998
In this video interview, Peter answered my call to share:
- His new memoir I Was Saved By The Bell
- Compare favorite episodes
- Get some behind-the-scene stories
- Find out what Peter's California Dreams are today
- So much more
Call Me Adam’s Adam Rothenberg and Peter Engel
More on Peter Engel:
Peter Engel, one of the most prolific producers in television with more than 1,000 episodes produced under his banner, single handedly created the teen sitcom with Saved By The Bell, which he executive produced through all of its many incarnations, and which led to his many other teen series, including California Dreams, Hang Time, City Guys, and USA High. As if defining and conquering the teen arena wasn't enough, Peter produced the iconic Last Comic Standing, enabling the discovery of an entirely new, fresh generation of comedians.
All of this would be more of a career than any producer could ever dream of having, and with more than 50 years in the television industry, Peter has forgotten more than most will ever know. But Peter’s story isn’t just his professional success; his life and work touched and inspired an entire “Bell” generation, whose values and views of a diverse world were shaped by the stories and plain old fun of Peter’s shows.
There is also another side of Peter that most don’t know—his personal journey that began in New York City’s Upper West Side; his discovery of television the night his family’s brand new TV lit up the living room; his first taste of creative success; the injustices of the 1950s; working for JFK’s election in 1960, with the catastrophic letdown that followed; his dream in the 1970s of making “important” television; his loves, marriages, family, and faith; and, in the 1990s and 2000s, finding his greatest success where he least expected it. Along the way, Peter encountered some of the most iconic personalities of his times—John Lennon, Orson Welles, Bette Davis, Jacques Cousteau, John DeLorean, and, of course, John F. Kennedy, among them—and great stories always followed.
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