Cher is mourning Bob Mackie, the longtime friend and designer whose imagination helped shape her public image.
Following his death at 87, she called him her “sweet Prince” and pictured him taking his sequins, beads and sketch pad to heaven, according to People.
It is a tender image for a farewell to someone whose work brought so much exuberance to the stage and screen.
Mackie’s death was announced on September 14, 2026.
The looks that became memories
His collaborations with Cher produced costumes that remain instantly recognizable, including her feathered 1986 Oscars ensemble.
Across television and live performance, his designs helped make an entrance feel like an event.
His work also embraced comedy, particularly during his eleven seasons designing for The Carol Burnett Show.
For Mackie, a costume could help a performer discover a character or deliver a visual punchline.
That range is part of what makes his legacy so distinctive: spectacle, humor and an understanding of the person wearing the clothes.
A world of possibility
The New York Times obituary, republished by The Philadelphia Inquirer, explores how Mackie’s work became a touchstone for gay viewers.
Author Frank DeCaro recalled the sense of escape and possibility those glamorous television worlds offered him.
That is a meaningful part of Mackie’s cultural contribution.
A spectacular costume can become more than something beautiful to look at.
For someone watching from a place where standing out feels difficult, it can offer an image of self-expression worth holding on to.
The partnership behind the work
Mackie’s personal story also included a long creative and romantic partnership with fellow costume designer Ray Aghayan.
Aghayan hired him in 1963, and the two shared a costume-design Emmy in 1967.
They built careers alongside a life together, with Aghayan dying in 2011.
Their partnership belongs in the story of the man behind the famous costumes, alongside the performers and audiences his work touched.
Remembering the person
Cher’s tribute brings that enormous legacy back to the affection between two people who worked together for decades.
Audiences have the photographs, the performances and the entrances they can still picture years later.
She is also remembering her friend.
Somewhere between those public memories and that personal goodbye is the measure of what Mackie gave: work that people recognized, enjoyed and carried with them.
📷 @bobmackie
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