Silver shirt worn by Michael Jackson during the 1987 Bad World Tour: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A silver spandex shirt with black details worn by Michael Jackson on the first leg of the Bad World Tour in 1987. The long-sleeved shirt has an asymmetrical front zipper closure that begins at the proper right side and crosses up to the proper left side neck. One (1) large metal snap is sewn at the proper right side waist below the zipper for further securing the shirt at the waist. The turned collar of the shirt is made from a black canvas, with one (1) large metal snap at the proper left side shoulder and one (1) small metal snap at the proper left front neck for securing the zippered cross-over front closure. The front closure and the neck below the collar are trimmed in a wide band of black satin with large circular silver metal grommets with black centers attached in a row down the center of the satin strip. A panel of black spandex is sewn along the center back waist of the shirt, reaching under the torso to the front center waist and attaching with three (3) large black hook-and-eyes. A white fabric label with black printed text reading "MICHAEL JACKSON" is sewn at the interior proper right back neck. Another label was previously removed from the interior proper left back neck. The shirt is not lined, but the satin panels with grommets are backed in black canvas.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1987
• Designed by: Bill Whitten, American, 1944 - 2006
• Worn by: Michael Jackson, American, 1958 - 2009
• Type: shirts
• Medium: spandex, synthetic satin, and cotton canvas, with metal embellishments and fasteners
• Dimensions: H x W x D (flat): 30 7/8 × 27 × 1 5/8 in. (78.4 × 68.6 × 4.1 cm)
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Clothing and dress
• Topic: Costume
• Topic: Costume design
• Topic: Design
• Topic: Popular music
• Object number: 2015.118.3
• 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.