Attended Zion Lutheran School in Anaheim, California. While in fifth grade, he portrayed 8th-grader Samuel "Screech" Powers in the television series Good Morning, Miss Bliss, which evolved into Saved by the Bell and its various television movies and spin-offs. Also appeared somewhat frequently in the television series The Wonder Years.


When Dustin was younger, he was a live mannequin for a store. Left handed. Defeated Ron Palillo (Horshack on "Welcome Back, Kotter" (1975)) on Fox's Celebrity Boxing 2 (2002) (TV). Has a black belt in karate. Ranked #16 in VH1's list of the 100 Greatest Kid Stars His girlfriend Jennifer suffered a miscarriage of their first child in December 2004 due to an ectopic pregnancy. They later created the Dustin Diamond foundation, which supports organizations that specialize in child care. On BBC Three he was listed in their Top 100 Annoying People List of 2006. Started to work as a stand-up comedian after "Saved by the Bell: The New Class" (1993).