Designer to the stars Bob Mackie dies at 87
Hollywood designer Bob Mackie, known for making stars such as Cher and Elton John sparkle, has died at 87.
"He lived his 87 years to the fullest, fulfilling his dream of being a Fashion and Costume Designer, which is all he ever wanted to do," a statement said on his social media accounts.
Mackie died in Palm Springs, California, from pneumonia, his publicist said.
Cher wears a creation by designer Bob Mackie as she poses with actor Don Ameche after presenting him with an Oscar, 1986. (AP: Lennox McLendon, File)
Dubbed the Designer to the Stars, Mackie won nine Emmy Awards, a Tony Award and was nominated for three Oscars, including one for Barbra Streisand's Funny Lady, in which she wore a sheer bat-wing gown.
He was inducted into the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences' Hall of Fame in 2002.
He designed gowns for Madonna, Streisand, Sharon Stone, Diana Ross and Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and concert costumes for Pink.
Mackie sketched the sheer, beaded gown Marilyn Monroe wore when she sang Happy Birthday at a fundraiser for President John F. Kennedy and the Democratic National Committee.
More recently, Taylor Swift turned to some Mackie originals for the cover of her 2025 album The Life of a Showgirl.
Sequins, rhinestones and glitter
Some of Mackie's most memorable looks were from his collaboration with Cher.
Mackie attended the 1974 Met Gala with Cher on his arm, dressed in what is perhaps one of the most famous so-called naked dresses of all time: a sheer beaded gown with white feathered sleeves and a white feathered skirt.
She and the dress ended up on the cover of Time magazine.
Cher, wearing a black sequined Bob Mackie gown, poses with her Oscar, 1988. (AP: Lennox McLendon, File)
Looks such as the 1986 beaded spider web — worn with a complementary Mohawk — and the barely-there gown she wore for her Best Actress win in 1988 turned heads and set tongues wagging at the time.
"The outfits are sometimes mistaken for fashion, but they're costumes like for a character in a play," Mackie said in 1999.
"I want people to have fun. I want people to say 'Wasn't that interesting?' or 'Wasn't that wild?'''
'His costumes were works of art'
Mackie had some retail success in the 1980s and '90s, launching a ready-to-wear line in 1982 that would ultimately land on the runway at New York Fashion Week, and he was an early partner of QVC.
Mackie also created dozens of different Barbie dolls for Mattel, with a wide variety of face sculpts, body types and storylines.
The documentary Bob Mackie: Naked Illusion debuted in 2024.
A Mackie dress Cher wore in 1975 was auctioned off in 2024 for $US101,600 ($142,000), 25 times its original estimate.
Host Whoopi Goldberg appears as Queen Elizabeth, in a Bob Mackie costume, during the Academy Awards, 1999. (AP: Eric Draper, File)
Elton John was among those paying tribute, writing on Instagram, "Every time I put something on that Bob made, I felt very, very special.
"His costumes were works of art, and he will go down as one of the most legendary designers ever in Hollywood.''
Actor Kristin Chenoweth called him a "legend", and designer Isaac Mizrahi wrote, simply, "heartbroken".
Singer Sabrina Carpenter wrote on Instagram that she felt "so lucky to have met Bob.
"His one-of-a-kind creations have inspired and brought so much happiness and confidence to my world, and they will continue to always x Mackie girl forever."
Actor Alyssa Milano called him "one of the best that ever was".
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