TV Host Mario Lopez, a South County Native, Gets Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame

It was a heck of a birthday for TV star Mario Lopez.

The Chula Vista native – well known for portraying star athlete A.C. Slater on the NBC early ’90s comedy “Saved by the Bell” – received his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on his 51st birthday Thursday.

“Saved by the Bell” may have given Lopez his launch, but more recently he has played host on a range of entertainment and talk shows, including “Access Hollywood” and “Extra.”

“This is the best birthday ever,” Lopez said as he accepted the honor at 6930 Hollywood Blvd., in front of Wahlburgers restaurant and across the street from the TCL Chinese Theatre.

Actor Mark Wahlberg was among those speaking at the ceremony, prompting Lopez to joke about his star’s location, “I’m assuming that means free burgers for life.”

“A special thanks to two legends who were incredibly influential in my life and my career – the late Norman Lear, who gave me my first professional job when I was only 10 years old on a show called ‘a.k.a. Pablo,’ and Dick Clark, who I was proud to call a good friend and a mentor to me,” Lopez said. “He said, `Mario, there are a lot of great actors out there, but very few great hosts.’

“And as my mom said earlier, she made a point to keep me busy as a kid – if you don’t have time for trouble, trouble won’t have time for you. And it wasn’t just about being busy, it was about time. And that time is, of course, the most valuable thing we have. Work hard while you have it. It’s not good enough to just spend it. You gotta use it. Well, I’ve used my time over the last 40 years doing what I love most.”

Lopez’s mother Elvia Lopez and Valari Dobson Staab, the chairman of NBCUniversal Local, joined Lopez at the ceremony.

The star is the 2,792nd since the completion of the Walk of Fame in 1961 with the initial 1,558 stars.

Born on Oct. 10, 1973 in Chula Vista, Lopez was discovered by a talent agent at a dance recital when he was 10. He made his professional acting debut as a cast member in the aforementioned ABC comedy “a.k.a. Pablo,” which ran for six weeks in 1984.

Lopez was a cast member on “Saved by the Bell” throughout its 1989-92 run. He also was part of a spinoff, “Saved by the Bell: The College Years,” which ran on NBC in the 1993-94 season, and the 2020-22 reboot on Peacock.

Lopez’s other television acting credits include portraying four-time Olympic gold medal-winning diver Greg Louganis in the 1997 USA Network made-for-television movie, “Breaking the Surface: The Greg Louganis Story,” the CBS daytime drama “The Bold and the Beautiful” and the FX medical drama “Nip/Tuck.”

Lopez has been a host of “Access Hollywood” since 2019 after being a host of the rival syndicated entertainment news program “Extra” from 2008- 2019.

He also hosts “Access Daily with Mario & Kit,” the radio shows `”On with Mario Lopez,” and “iHeartRadio Countdown with Mario Lopez” and a boxing podcast. He hosted the Miss America pageant in 2007, 2009 and 2010 and the Miss Universe pageant in 2007 and 2020.