- published: 14 Jan 2015
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Robert Gordon "Bob" Mackie (born March 24, 1940 in Monterey Park, California) is an American fashion designer, best known for his costuming for entertainment icons such as Cher, Judy Garland, Diana Ross, Liza Minnelli, Tina Turner, and Mitzi Gaynor. He was the costume designer for The Carol Burnett Show during its entire 11 year run and designed the costumes for the 1993 television adaptation of Gypsy.
Mackie is also known for his exclusive dress designs for collector's edition Barbie dolls.
Two of Mackie's best-remembered creations had a humorous aspect. While working on The Carol Burnett Show, he designed a "curtain dress" (complete with a curtain rod across the shoulders) that Carol Burnett wore in the Gone with the Wind parody: Went with the Wind. Mackie also designed the garish ensemble worn by Cher at the March 1986 Academy Awards: 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. Introduced by Jane Fonda with the words, "Wait'll you see what's gonna come out here," Cher was appearing as a presenter after what many considered an Oscar snub (Cher was not nominated for her performance in Mask). "As you can see," said Cher, "I did receive my Academy booklet on how to dress like a serious actress."
Judy Garland (June 10, 1922 – June 22, 1969) was an American actress, singer and vaudevillian. Renowned for her contralto voice, she attained international stardom through a career that spanned 45 of her 47 years as an actress in musical and dramatic roles, as a recording artist and on the concert stage. Respected for her versatility, she received a Juvenile Academy Award and won a Golden Globe Award, as well as Grammy Awards and a Special Tony Award. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in the remake of A Star is Born and for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the 1961 film, Judgment at Nuremberg. At 39 years of age, she remains the youngest recipient of the Cecil B. DeMille Award for lifetime achievement in the motion picture industry.
After appearing in vaudeville with her two older sisters, Garland was signed to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer as a teenager. There she made more than two dozen films, including nine with Mickey Rooney and the 1939 film with which she would be most identified, The Wizard of Oz. After 15 years, she was released from the studio but gained renewed success through record-breaking concert appearances, including a return to acting beginning with critically acclaimed performances.
Martha Stewart (née Kostyra; August 3, 1941) is an American business magnate, author, magazine publisher, and television personality. As founder of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, she has gained success through a variety of business ventures, encompassing publishing, broadcasting, merchandising, and electronic commerce. She has written numerous bestselling books, is the publisher of the Martha Stewart Living magazine, and her syndicated talk show, Martha, is broadcast throughout the world.
In 2004, Stewart was entangled in the ImClone insider trading affair and there was speculation that the incident would effectively be the end of her media empire. She began a comeback campaign in 2005 and her company returned to profitability in 2006. Stewart rejoined the board of directors of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia in 2011 and became chairman of her namesake company again in 2012.
Martha Stewart was born in Jersey City, New Jersey to middle-class Polish American parents, Edward "Eddie" Kostyra (c. 1912 – 1979) and Jadwiga Martha Ruszkowski Kostyra (b. September 16, 1914, Buffalo, New York – d. November 16, 2007, Norwalk, Connecticut). She lived in Jersey City until the age of 3, when her family moved to Nutley. She was raised in Nutley along with her five siblings. She took the name "Grace" for her confirmation name before graduating from Nutley High School.