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Earlier this month, while Bob Mackie was busy doing press for his new documentary, Bob Mackie: Naked Illusion, the iconic designer took a tumble on the streets of New York City that required him to rush to the hospital via ambulance. It was an entirely grim situation… until the EMT worker pulled out her iPhone to cheer him up. On her screen? She showed Mackie her most recent Halloween costume, which was a tribute to his work. “She was in the dress he designed for Miley Cyrus [at this year’s Grammys],” says Joe McFate, Mackie’s longtime design director.
It’s the Bob Mackie superpower: His ability to create dresses for A-listers that will be remembered—and duplicated—for years to come. Over the past six decades, the prolific designer has created custom stage looks for stars like Cher, Tina Turner, Carol Burnett, and a new wave of performers like Cyrus and Sabrina Carpenter. It was only a matter of time before Mackie’s impressive life became the subject of a new documentary: In theaters now and streaming on Prime Video, Bob Mackie: Naked Illusion explores Mackie’s one-of-a-kind career in fashion, and how he became the go-to designer for some of Hollywood’s biggest acts.
The documentary traces Mackie’s rise in the industry, going back to his early days when he began working for Paramount Studios—first as a sketch artist, then working for the legendary costume designer Edith Head in the 1960s. “I was never all that interested in fashion, as much as I was in costume design,” Mackie tells Vogue. “I was interested in show business. All through high school, I was all about putting on plays, that sort of thing.” As he began to navigate the glitzy world of enteratinment, it didn’t take long for people to begin noticing his work. “Once I started working in Hollywood, everybody kind of liked what I did,” says Mackie. “I started doing a lot of television and things that weren t exactly what I wanted to do, but I thought, ‘Well, this is all good—people are watching.’”
Notably, Mackie made a name for himself when he began designing glamorous ensembles for popular variety shows in the ’60s and ’70s, including The Judy Garland Show, Cher, and The Carol Burnett Show. During this time, the designer cultivated a signature look—body-conscious gowns that were often covered in dazzling crystals and sequins, and punctuated with fabulous feather boas or capes. “I could create characters for [them] that weren t always specified in the script,” says Mackie. “When you re designing for performers, you have to think about what does the audience want to see them look like—especially if they re playing big theaters or stadiums.”
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It was also during this era that one of his most famous signatures—the naked dress, featuring a see-through mesh construction that matches the wearer’s skin tone—was born. Mackie says he crafted his very first naked dress for Mitzi Gaynor back in 1968. “She had a beautiful figure, and loved to get dressed up,” says Mackie of the inspiration. “[At the time,] I was drawing sketches for the French designer Jean Louis, who had been doing the Marlene Dietrich outfits for Vegas whenever she was performing. They were rather see-through, and I thought, ‘Well, I could do that.’”
Of course, Mackie’s many naked dresses for Cher—including that dress she wore to the 1974 Met Gala—shot the designer’s work into an entirely new stratosphere. He recalls the moment she wore his naked dress on the cover of Time in 1975—and the controversy that ensued. “It was sort of shocking and wild,” says Mackie. “We didn t expect it at all. In some places in the country, it was banned from the newsstands, or they ripped the covers off. I mean, it was just really silly. Today, you re lucky if you can keep everybody covered.”
Clearly, Mackie was ahead of his time with the look, as the naked dress remains wildly popular. (In fact, it was one of this year’s biggest red carpet trends, with It girls like Bella Hadid, Charli XCX, and Zoe Kravitz all wearing totally transparent designs.) For Mackie, this imitation is a form of flattery. “They kept knocking my old stuff off for a while, and nobody paid much attention,” he says. “Now, all of a sudden, these young performers are wanting to borrow things from my archive, or having me do special ones for them.”
Recently, Mackie’s archival dresses have been a hit with the next generation of talent: We’ve seen his pieces on Sabrina Carpenter, Miley Cyrus, Zendaya, and more. Often, the stars or their stylists hit him up directly to revive one of his older designs—though he remains selective about who gets access to the precious gems. “I don t like to hand things out to people [if] I think it s not going to look very good on them,” Mackie says. “I’m very careful about what I put on people, and how they look.” When he does dress celebs, however, Mackie says it’s certainly special to see his designs take on new lives. “Miley is one of those stars that were born to be on stage,” says Mackie. (When she wore his dress to the Grammys, it went instantly viral.) “You just watch her do her thing at the Grammys and you go, ‘Okay, honey, you re working it.’”
It’s not just Young Hollywood stars who are calling Mackie for looks, either. On TikTok, many Gen Z fashion lovers are documenting their Bob Mackie finds. Though the designer hasn t seen these videos—“I’m not [on TikTok], I’m an old dinosaur,” he says—he appreciates the passion for his work. “It s lovely when things keep going on forever, I guess. The dresses are out there; there were times when I was doing collections of clothes and would make dozens of the same dress. Now, they’re ending up in these resale places or vintage shops.”
Perhaps the most poignant part of Mackie’s new documentary, however, is the glimpse into Mackie’s life outside of the design studio. Famously a private and behind-the-scenes figure, Mackie gives viewers a rare look into his personal life, delving into his relationship with his family—including with his ex-wife, LuLu Porter, and his two great-grandchildren. “LuLu and I have been friends since I was 16. We still talk on the phone, discussing the business and everything,” says Mackie. His great-grandchildren, however, want nothing to do with the fashion business—yet. “One loves soccer, and the other is a lifeguard at the pool—she’s a great swimmer,” says Mackie.
The documentary hits streaming later this month, and feedback from the theatrical release had already been overwhelmingly positive. “We did the screening in Los Angeles; there were 900 people in the theater, it was crazy,” says Mackie. “They were really lovely about it and so complimentary. Hollywood s tough: If they don t like what you ve done, they don t want to tell you they liked it!”
