Bob Mackie dead at 87: Legendary fashion designer for Cher and Diana Ross dies

Legendary fashion and costume designer Bob Mackie, whose sequined gowns for Cher, Diana Ross, Tina Turner and other stars dazzled red carpets for decades, has sewn his final stitch. Mackie died Monday at 87, according to a post on his Instagram account. “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,” the post read. “His genius and extraordinary designs will live on forever, continuing to bring beauty into this world.” His longtime publicist Jenelle Hamilton confirmed that he died of pneumonia on Monday morning in Palm Springs, Calif. Known as the “sultan of sequins,” Mackie dressed some of Hollywood’s biggest names over more than 50 years. His creations for celebrities like Carol Burnett, Liza Minnelli and Barbra Streisand stunned both performers and fans alike, and remain some of the most iconic costumes ever worn. “Every time I put something on that Bob made, I felt very, very special,” Sir Elton John said on social media Monday. “His costumes were works of art, and he will go down as one of the most legendary designers ever in Hollywood.” “He loved glamour like I love glamour, but more than anything, we shared the same sense of humour and had so much fun together,” he added. Born in the Los Angeles suburb of Monterey Park, Mackie first attended nearby Pasadena City College before transferring to what would become the California Institute of the Arts, the New York Times reported. He dropped out to work as a costume sketch artist in 1961, which included sketching the skintight, beaded dress worn by Marilyn Monroe in 1962 when she sang “Happy Birthday” to President John F. Kennedy. A year later he was hired by the man who would become his lifelong romantic and creative partner, Ray Aghayan, to work on “The Judy Garland Show.” The pair went on to win the first-ever Emmy Award for costume design in 1967. Aghayan died of kidney failure in 2011 at 83. Mackie was briefly married to Marianne Nicholson, an actress known as Lulu Porter and they divorced in the early 1960s, according to the Times. Their son, Robert Gordon Mackie Jr., who worked as a makeup artist, died from complications related to AIDS in 1993. His work with actress, singer and dancer Mitzi Gaynor in 1966, caught Burnett’s attention, according to a short biography on his website. Her producer hired him to design the complete wardrobe for “The Carol Burnett Show,” a post he held for 11 seasons. A star was born. “Throughout his extraordinary body of work, Bob Mackie understood the unique power of costume in comedy — to help create a character and become part of the creative energy that drove the comedy itself,” National Comedy Center Executive Director Journey Gunderson said in a statement. His work with Burnett, Cher, Joan Rivers, Bette Midler and Lucille Ball “helped shape some of comedy’s most memorable moments on television and stage,” he added. In 1982, Mackie launched a ready-to-wear collection and a line of collectable Barbie dolls, which featured red carpet-ready dresses complete with headdresses, dramatic long trains and his signature sequined glow. Throughout the decades, his designs took on an increasingly universal appeal despite — or perhaps because of — their sheer scale and luminosity. One of his most famous pieces, the flame dress, has been worn by pop icons Beyoncé and Turner, as well as Cher, with whom he also shared a lengthy creative partnership. The dress, a version of which first debuted in 1968 on “The Fred Astaire Show,” initially featured large gold paillettes. By the time Cher and Turner donned matching versions on “The Sonny & Cher Show,” the paillettes were replaced by smaller sparkly sequins that came to typify his work. The racy design was more of a bodysuit than a dress, with sheer nude cutouts and sequins sewn into the shape of flames. “A woman who wears my clothes is not afraid to be noticed,” Mackie famously once said. In 1986, after Cher was snubbed for her performance in “Mask,” Mackie outfitted her in a tall black feather headdress and beaded two-piece ensemble baring her famously toned midriff. Cher joked at the Academy Awards that at least she received her “Academy booklet on how to dress like a serious actress.” In 1999 he won an Emmy for “Cher: Live in Concert from Las Vegas” and another in 2003 for “Cher: The Farewell Tour,” according to the biography on his website. In total, Mackie won nine Emmy Awards and earned three Oscar nods over the course of his illustrious career. He was nominated for 30 Emmys. “With his choice of vibrant colors, luxurious fabrics, and intricate detail,” his website reads, “Bob Mackie’s work continues to exude timeless glamour.”