Illustrations, costumes and more from designer Bob Mackie were featured in the Julien’s Auctions and Turner Classic Movies collaboration “Unmistakably Mackie” on Wednesday in Beverly Hills. The live and online event boasted several pieces of Mackie ephemera, featuring designs the noted fashion icon created for the likes of Cher, Carol Burnett and Diahann Carroll.
“Unmistakably Mackie” attracted more than 1,800 registered bids worldwide, exceeding pre-sale estimates for the white glove sale event. More than 70 pieces of Mackie’s own fashion archive, which spans the designer’s six-decade career, featured a rare trove of illustrations of his masterworks.
A Bob Mackie design.
Courtesy Julien’s Auctions & TCM
Three key pieces were sold at auction for staggering prices. Cher’s 1977 “It Had to Be You” performance look she styled on “The Sonny and Cher Show,” which sold for $101,600. “The Carol Burnett Show” Norma Desmond costume illustration drew $25,400, which was 25 times over estimate.
Another piece worn by the “Moonstruck” Oscar-winner that sold was her 1975 “Take Me Home” performance ensemble worn by the multi-hyphenate talent on “The Cher Show,” which was sold at $95,250.
Cher with Bob Mackie at The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute Gala Exhibition “Romantic and Glamorous Hollywood Design” on Nov. 28, 1974, in New York City.
Ron Galella/Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images
“I’ve dressed so many people in so many shows and movies. I don’t know what happened to all those years. They just disappeared into memory,” Mackie previously told WWD in August, ahead of the premiere of his documentary, “Bob Mackie: Naked Illusion.”
Of the high-profile stars Mackie dressed throughout the years, the designer told WWD, “They just become part of my family. People say, ‘Oh, well, didn’t you have trouble with any of them?’ and I say, ‘Hardly any — I really had the best people working with me. They liked what I did and I loved what they did. When you dress somebody, you’ve really got to know them inside and out especially if they’re performers. You have to know what’s good for them and how to make them look the best. Also, having a knowledge of their talents helps.”
