Bill Frank Whitten

Bill Frank Whitten was a Hollywood fashion designer who designed stage clothing and high-end fashion for musicians and celebrities.
In 1974, Whitten's custom shirt business in West Hollywood, Workroom 27, was discovered by Neil Diamond who became an advocate for Whitten's custom-designed clothing. At the height of his business, Whitten had a factory with 50 employees making stage clothing for 20 groups including the Commodores, The Jacksons, and Edgar Winter. He also designed Michael Jackson's famous rhinestone glove and crystal-encrusted socks. In 1990, he opened a store, Bill Whitten, on Melrose Avenue.
Whitten died of cancer on April 8, 2006. He is the brother of artist Jack Whitten.

Legacy

Whitten's highly beaded and crystal-set performance pieces remained culturally resonant decades later. In 2019, a pair of crystal-encrusted "moonwalking" socks associated with Michael Jackson and attributed to Whitten's atelier drew international auction headlines, underscoring continuing interest in his stagecraft. In 2025, Levi Strauss & Co. announced that its archives had acquired an early-1970s patchwork denim tuxedo suit Whitten created for Elton John, documenting Whitten’s experimentation with denim alongside his signature embellishment techniques.