Bob Mackie, Cher's Longtime Costume Designer, Dies at 87
Bob Mackie knew his way around a sequin.
For more than six decades, the legendary costume designer helped make some of entertainment's biggest stars look even bigger, dressing everyone from Cher and Tina Turner, to Diana Ross, Elton John, and Miley Cyrus.
Mackie died on September 14 at age 87, leaving behind a fashion legacy that was never interested in blending into the background.
Bob Mackie's Cause of Death Confirmed at Age 87
Bob Mackie's cause of death was pneumonia, according to his rep.
He died on Monday, September 14th in Palm Springs, California. He was 87.
News of his death was announced through social media, where his team remembered a man who spent his life doing exactly what he'd always wanted to do: design fashion and costumes.
It's difficult to imagine a more fitting career because Mackie's work was unapologetically glamorous, dripping in beads, feathers, crystals, and sequins.
Cher and Bob Mackie Made Fashion History Together
For many of us, it's impossible to think about Mackie without immediately thinking about Cher.
Bob Mackie, as Cher’s costume designer, produced some of the singer's most unforgettable looks.
They first crossed paths during Mackie's TV work, and he later became a costume designer for The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour.
From there, things got wonderfully sparkly.
Among their famous collaborations was Cher's sheer, feathered look for the 1974 Met Gala.
He also created the dramatic black ensemble she wore to the 1986 Academy Awards, complete with an enormous feathered headpiece that had absolutely no intention of letting anyone else win the red carpet.
Their partnership continued long after the 1970s and '80s, helping cement both Cher and Mackie as architects of a fearless glamour.
The Carol Burnett Show Let Him Run Wild
Before those famous Cher looks, television gave Mackie an enormous playground.
His years on the Carol Burnett Show produced thousands of costumes.
He created about 50 costumes a week for the cast and guests.
That meant glamorous gowns one minute and something deliciously ridiculous the next.
Perhaps no costume captures that better than Carol Burnett's famous curtain dress from the show's Gone With the Wind parody.
Mackie turned green curtains into a gown and left the curtain rod sticking straight across Burnett's shoulders.
It was a visual joke before Burnett even opened her mouth.
The costume eventually became part of the Smithsonian's collection, where it remains today.
He Dressed More Than One Generation
Mackie's client list reads less like a résumé and more like somebody poured several decades of entertainment history onto the table.
He created looks for:
Barbra Streisand
Diana Ross
Tina Turner
Bette Midler
Liza Minnelli
Whitney Houston
Elton John
Then, he kept going.
Long after his earliest television work, Mackie's designs were still appearing on a new generation of stars, including:
Miley Cyrus
Pink
Zendaya
Sabrina Carpenter
Mackie's career never became a relic of one golden period of Hollywood.
His clothes kept finding new stages and new stars.
Even Marilyn Monroe Wore a Little Mackie Magic
One of Mackie's earliest brushes with fashion history came before people even knew his name.
As a young sketch artist working for designer Jean Louis, Mackie drew the original sketch for the sparkling, skin-tight gown Marilyn Monroe wore while singing "Happy Birthday" to President John F. Kennedy in 1962.
Jean Louis ultimately created the famous dress, but Mackie's hand was there at the beginning.
It's quite an opening act for someone who would spend the next several decades making fabulous clothes for fabulous people.
A Career Built for the Spotlight
Mackie's work earned him nine Emmy Awards, a Tony Award, and three Academy Award nominations.
But, awards only tell part of the story.
His costumes became pieces of pop culture themselves.
We remember the person who wore them, but we also remember the details: the feathers, the crystals, the impossible silhouettes, and the occasional curtain rod.
The news that Bob Mackie died at 87 closes an extraordinary chapter in fashion and entertainment history.
But, it's hard to imagine these masterpieces fading into the background simply because their designer is gone.
Bob Mackie may be gone. But, he left us with enough sparkle to last several lifetimes.
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