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Bob Mackie's death certificate lists head trauma after a fall days before he died

A death certificate obtained by Us Weekly reportedly lists blunt head trauma and a subarachnoid hemorrhage after a fall as designer Bob Mackie's immediate cause of death. His representative had earlier cited pneumonia and now says he also had pneumonia.

2 outlets · 0L · 1C · 1R First reported Account updated
Image: Daily Mail
Image: Deadline

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The story, neutrally told

Mixed · 2Fashion and costume designer Bob Mackie died on September 14 at age 87. Mixed · 2His death certificate, obtained by Us Weekly, reportedly lists blunt head trauma and a subarachnoid hemorrhage as the cause of death, after a fall at the Palm Springs home of his longtime design director, Joseph McFate. Centre · 1Deadline gives the date of the fall as September 11, three days before his death.

Right · 1A representative for Mackie had previously told multiple outlets the cause of death was pneumonia. Mixed · 2Deadline says the official cause of death was ruled as pneumonia, while the Daily Mail frames the certificate as contradicting the representative's account; the two outlets' descriptions of the certificate differ. Right · 1After the certificate's release, Mackie's representative told Us Weekly that he was staying in the guest house at McFate's home, that a healthcare professional was with him when he fell, and that he was also suffering from pneumonia before and after his hospitalization.

Mixed · 2According to the certificate, his body was cremated on September 17 and his remains were scattered at sea off the coast of San Diego. Mixed · 2Mackie was known for dressing Cher, Carol Burnett and many other stars; the Daily Mail notes he was a 32-time Emmy nominee and three-time Oscar nominee, and Deadline calls him Tony- and Emmy-winning. Mixed · 2The Daily Mail said it had reached out to a representative for Mackie for comment, and the coverage relies on Us Weekly's report rather than independent access to the certificate.

Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.

Left0 outlets

No left outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.

Centre1 outlet

Framing
Short, report-attributed news item: Mackie suffered head trauma in a fall days before dying, per Us Weekly.
Emphasis
The fall date (September 11), hospital location, cremation, and career highlights.
Leaves out or plays down
Does not mention the representative's earlier pneumonia statement or the representative's clarification as a conflict.
Charged language
“eye-popping gowns”
For example
“According to an exclusive new report in US magazine” — Deadline

Right1 outlet

Framing
Frames the certificate as a revelation that contradicts the representative's earlier pneumonia explanation.
Emphasis
The gap between the certificate and the earlier cause of death; the representative's clarification; long career recap.
Leaves out or plays down
Does not give the September 11 fall date or say where he died.
Charged language
“reveals”“Sultan of Sequins”
For example
“despite his rep citing pneumonia as the cause” — Daily Mail