Bob Mackie, the costume designer whose glittering creations defined decades of American entertainment and earned him the nickname "Sultan of Sequins," has died at 87, according to a statement posted Monday to his Instagram account.
"It is with a heavy heart that we share the news that Mr Bob Mackie passed away today," the statement read. "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. His genius and extraordinary designs will live on forever, continuing to bring beauty into this world."
Over a career that stretched more than half a century, Mackie won a Tony Award, collected nine Emmys and received three Oscar nominations. He dressed Cher, Tina Turner, Dolly Parton and Elton John, among many others, and became one of the most recognizable figures in Hollywood costume design.
His partnership with Cher produced some of the most memorable fashion moments in television and film history. Mackie designed the showgirl-inspired look she wore to the 1986 Academy Awards, complete with a plumed headdress and bare midriff. The outfit became known as her "revenge" dress, worn the year she was not nominated for Mask, a film many observers expected would earn her recognition.
"I didn't get nominated for a movie that everyone thought I would actually win for [Mask] — so was dressing that night for a kind of revenge," Cher recalled in the 2024 documentary Bob Mackie: Naked Illusion.
Mackie credited Cher's willingness to take risks for much of their success. In a 2010 BBC interview, he said she "looked like no-one else in the entertainment business at the time," adding, "Everybody just went crazy over this woman as she could wear anything." Cher was widely reported to be the first woman to show her belly button on American television, a moment built around Mackie's designs.
Born Robert Gordon Mackie in Monterey Park, California, in 1939, he started his career as a sketch artist for costume designer Jean Louis. One of his early assignments was sketching the dress Marilyn Monroe wore when she sang "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" to John F. Kennedy in 1962.
Mackie married singer and actress Lulu Porter in 1960. The couple divorced three years later, and their son, Robin, died in his early thirties from an AIDS-related illness. Mackie later shared his life with Iranian fashion designer Ray Aghayan from 1963 until Aghayan's death in 2011.
He remained active and self-aware about his unusual longevity in the industry. "I think I'm the oldest living designer in Hollywood," he told The Guardian in 2018. Asked whether he would ever retire, his answer was brief: "I hope not."
Why this matters
Mackie's death closes a chapter in an era when Hollywood costume designers were as famous as the stars they dressed. His work helped shape the modern red carpet, where fashion is scrutinized as closely as the awards themselves, and his decades-long collaboration with Cher demonstrated how a designer and a performer could build a shared visual identity that outlasted trends. His nine Emmys and Tony Award reflect a rare crossover success across television, film and Broadway.
