Shirt worn by Michael Jackson during Victory tour: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A custom made tour costume top worn by Michael Jackson. The shirt is sleeveles and constructed in two panels. The back is blue spandex with a hanging curved flap which has a strip of velcro sewn horizontally about 7 inches from the bottom. The front panel is blue silk, the chest of which is covered entirely in cylindrical blue, red, white and black beads in an abstract, flowing shape. The bottom of the front panel has a curved flap, with two strips of velcro affixed horizontally about 9 inches from the bottom. On the outer portion of the PL of this flap is a handwritten message and signature in black ink. The two panels are sewn together down the proper left side and on the pright right are attached via a small toothed zipper on top of the shoulder, which does not detach completely, and a larger toothed zipper along the torso, at the top of which is a small metal hook and eye fastner. On the interior there is a fine sheer fabric panel sewn to the front silk panel only over the chest area. Sewn to the interior front of the collar is a white rectangular tag printed with [MICHAEL JACKSON] in black.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1984
• Attributed to: Bill Whitten, American, 1944 - 2006
• Worn by: Michael Jackson, American, 1958 - 2009
• Signed by: Michael Jackson, American, 1958 - 2009
• Type: shirts
• Medium: synthetic fiber and sequin, silk (textile), metal, trimming (material)
• Dimensions: H x W (Laid flat): 30 1/2 × 19 in. (77.5 × 48.3 cm)
• Dimensions: Shoulder width: 16 1/8 in. (41 cm)
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Clothing and dress
• Topic: Costume
• Topic: Costume design
• Topic: Design
• Topic: Popular music
• Object number: 2010.23.3
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: © Estate of Bill Whitten and Jams M Cross (Executor) & Family Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.