Bob Mackie dies aged 87: designer of iconic stage costumes for Cher and Elton John

Bob Mackie died aged 87, his official Instagram account said on Monday. The post stated he “lived his 87 years to the fullest” and that his designs “will live on forever.”

Mackie dressed performers including Cher, Tina Turner, Dolly Parton, Elton John and Pink. He created Cher’s Mohawk outfit for the 1986 Oscars, a look widely noted in coverage as her “revenge” outfit.

He designed several of Elton John’s stage costumes, including a bedazzled Dodgers baseball outfit worn at Dodger Stadium in 1975. Elton John wrote on Instagram that Mackie’s costumes were “works of art.”

Mackie’s awards included a Tony Award, nine Emmys, and three Oscar nominations. He continued designing late in life: Sabrina Carpenter wore one of his designs at the MTV Video Music Awards in 2023, and he designed a dress worn by Miley Cyrus at the 2024 Grammy Awards.

Born in Monterey Park, California, in 1939, Mackie began as a sketch artist for Jean Louis; an early assignment was the sketch for Marilyn Monroe’s dress for her 1962 “Happy Birthday Mr President” performance.

His personal life included a marriage to Lulu Porter in 1960 and a divorce in 1963; their son Robin died in his early thirties from an AIDS-related illness. Mackie was in a relationship with fashion designer Ray Aghayan from 1963 until Aghayan’s death in 2011.