When Elvis Presley made his legendary comeback TV special in 1968, he proved not only by his singing and charismatic stage presence that the King was back but also by what he wore in the concert segment: a tight-fitting black leather outfit.
Costume designer Bill Belew conceived the iconic ensemble -- as well as a gold lame jacket and a white two-piece suit that Elvis wore in the special -- and went on to create the flamboyant, bejeweled jumpsuits, matching capes and wide, ornate belts that became Elvis' trademark stage wear in the '70s.
"As a wardrobe designer," Belew said in an interview in 2007, "Bob Mackie had a perfect muse and a perfect canvas in Cher. I got to have that in Elvis."
Belew, who came to be known to Presley fans as "the man who dressed the King," died Jan. 7 at Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs after a lengthy battle with diabetes, said Paul Dafelmair, Belew's longtime companion. He was 76.
During his nearly five-decade career, Belew created costumes for plays, musicals, operas, ballets, TV specials and TV series.
Over the years, he designed for an array of performers, including Josephine Baker, Ella Fitzgerald, Gladys Knight, Brooke Shields, Gloria Estefan, Flip Wilson and Doc Severinsen.
But for many, Belew is best known for his work with Presley.
"Bill Belew changed the face of rock 'n' roll fashion," said Presley costume historian Butch Polston, owner of B & K Enterprises Costume Co.in Charlestown, Ind., which sells re-creations of Presley jumpsuits and other garments.
"Bill is the one who created the jumpsuit" for Presley, Polston said Wednesday.
"After that, everybody wanted to dress like Elvis," he said. "He designed stuff for the Osmonds, the Jacksons, just numerous celebrities."
For Belew, the collaboration with Presley -- which included designing his personal wardrobe and continued until the singer's death in 1977 -- began with the 1968 "Elvis" special on NBC.
Belew had already worked on a Petula Clark special with producer-director Steve Binder when Binder asked him to do the wardrobe for the hourlong Presley show.
It didn't take the designer long to come up with his idea for what Elvis should wear in the concert segment before a live audience.
"It always seemed like people assumed he wore black leather, but he never did," Belew recalled in an interview with Salon.com in 1999.
