Background and career
Robert Gordon Mackie (March 24, 1939 – September 14, 2026) was an American fashion designer and costumier, best known for his dressing of numerous entertainment personalities for television, movies, concerts, and live stage shows. He was the costume designer for The Carol Burnett Show (1967–78), and the creator of memorable ensembles for Cher, Tina Turner, Dolly Parton, Elton John, and Sabrina Carpenter. Mackie is referred to alliteratively as the "Sultan of Sequins", the "Rajah of Rhinestones" or the "Guru of Glitter" for his sparkling and imaginative designs. Mackie said, "A woman who wears my clothes is not afraid to be noticed." Mattel partnered with him to produce outfits for collectable Barbie dolls, and he introduced cultural diversity to their features and outfits to reflect the heritage of real-life women. He received ten Emmy Awards, a Tony Award, and three nominations for the Academy Award for Best Costume Design for his work.
Mackie was born in Monterey Park, California on March 24, 1939, to Charles Robert Mackie and Mildred Agnes (née Smith) Mackie. His father worked at Bank of America. He had an older sister. Mackie was raised in early childhood by his maternal grandparents in Alhambra, California, because his parents divorced. By high school he moved to Rosemead, California, and lived with his father. He attended Rosemead High School. He continued his education at Pasadena City College and one-year study at Chouinard Art Institute but left without earning a degree from either school. At Chouinard, Mackie studied under Eva Roberts, the head of the fashion design department. He left Chouinard early because he got his first job sketching for Frank Thompson at Paramount Studios. Between 1960 and 1963, Mackie worked as a novice designer and assistant under designer Ray Aghayan at Paramount Studios.
While he was working at Paramount Studios, costumer Edith Head engaged Mackie to work on the 1963 films Donovan's Reef and A New Kind of Love. He said "Edith Head taught me not so much about designing as how to handle producers, directors, and actors. Her public relations were superb."
In Mackie's early career he worked as a sketch artist for French haute couturier Jean Louis, who is noted for having crafted stage gowns worn by actress Marlene Dietrich during her career as a cabaret singer. As one of his first assignments, he drew the original sketch of Marilyn Monroe's dress worn in 1962 at President John F. Kennedy's birthday celebration at Madison Square Garden in New York. In 1966, Mackie was hired by Mitzi Gaynor to design her new stage show at the Riviera in Las Vegas. Gaynor was the first star client for whom Mackie designed an entire show. During her second network special, she wore a form-fitting "nude illusion" gown made from a knit fabric called soufflé, which has influenced gown construction worn by many entertainers throughout the years. He would continue to design for her television specials and live stage shows for the next 50 years. He won two Emmy Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Costume Design for Music-Variety for Gaynor's TV specials Mitzi...Roarin' in the Twenties (1976) and Mitzi...Zings into Spring (1977). In 1969, Mackie was hired to design costumes for Diana Ross, the Supremes, and the Temptations in the television special G.I.T. on Broadway. In 1972, he and Aghayan were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Costume Design for Lady Sings the Blues, starring Ross. Mackie and Ross continued their collaborative efforts well into the 21st century, with Mackie designing stage costumes for Ross's 2010 More Today Than Yesterday: The Greatest Hits Tour.
Mackie designed costumes for the Las Vegas Strip-based burlesque shows Hallelujah Hollywood, which was inspired by the Ziegfeld Follies and ran at the MGM Grand (now Horseshoe Las Vegas) from 1974 to 1980, and Jubilee!, which ran from 1981 to 2016. Both productions involved intricate, elaborate costumes. Images of many of Mackie's design drawings for these productions are available for viewing online in the Donn Arden papers archive from the UNLV Libraries Digital Collections. Elton John's Donald Duck, sequined Los Angeles Dodgers, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart concert costumes were also designed by Mackie.
He designed the exotic ensemble worn by Cher at the 58th Academy Awards in March 1986: black stretch pants, a bejeweled loincloth, knee-high boots, a black chainlink top, and a huge feathered Mohawk headdress that was one-and-a-half times taller than her head. She was introduced by Jane Fonda with the words, "Wait'll you see what's gonna come out here". "As you can see", said Cher, "I did receive my Academy booklet on how to dress like a serious actress." Mackie designed costumes for Whitney Houston, especially splashy evening gowns which she wore for many years during concert tours and award shows. He won nine Primetime Emmy Awards for his designs, and was nominated three times for an Academy Award. In 1981, Mackie guest-starred as himself on two episodes of the television series The Love Boat. In 2002, Mackie was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame.
