'The Looks of Love'

NEW YORK -- Fashion and style have forever been in bed with film, television and music, especially the moments that scream love.

We all have our top pop memories of romance, lust, marriage and heartbreak from those worlds and more, including the beauty industry and the world of advertising. In a new book, "The Looks of Love: 50 Moments in Fashion That Inspired Romance," insider and designer Hal Rubenstein has rounded up some of his.

We asked him to illuminate his favorites from the book, which was released by Harper Design in plenty of time for Valentine's Day:

Love Story

FILE -In this 1969 file photo, concert-goers sit on the roof of a Volkswagen bus at the Woodstock Music and Arts Fair at Bethel, New York. The fashion of the period is included in a new book, "The Looks of Love: 50 Moments in Fashion that Inspired Romance. (AP Photo, File)

Rubenstein calls 1970's "Love Story" a "cheaply produced, poorly shot and badly edited" film of Erich Segal's runaway best-selling book.

Both had fans weeping by the millions.

Among the reasons the film did well were the genetically blessed stars, Ali MacGraw and Ryan O'Neal, but coming as it did in the ascendancy of Woodstock, with its bell-bottoms and beaded necklaces, "Love Story" ironically led the way for preppy style. Forever.

In his Harris Tweed blazers over Shetland sweaters and blue Oxford cloth shirts with collars out, O'Neal's Ollie might well have been raised by the sales staff of Brooks Brothers, Rubenstein said.

MacGraw's Jenny, meanwhile, walked a protest-free campus in a peacoat, black turtleneck and plaid skirt with matching scarf once the book (thanks to a plug of gold from fan Barbara Walters) hit the big screen the year after the seismic Woodstock.

Sonny and Cher

FILE - In this May 2, 2005, file photo, bottles of Chanel No. 5 perfume are displayed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute exhibit in New York. Coco Channel hated flowery perfumes and a chose a scent infused with a chemical that evoked the smell of soap for the iconic No. 5. The story is included in a new book, "The Looks of Love: 50 Moments in Fashion that Inspired Romance. (AP Photo/Hiroko Masuike, File)

Her Bob Mackie gowns and long straight raven hair are legendary, as are his furry vests and Prince Valiant 'dos.

But there's something else, Rubenstein said, besides their break-out dueting that hit the Top 40 in 1965.

They followed up with "The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour" that premiered on CBS in 1971, ending in 1974.

The two fell out of love and divorced in 1975. Both had short-lived solo TV shows before CBS persuaded them in 1976 to reunite as a divorced couple in the same time slot, Sunday nights.

"They were the first high-profile couple ever to appear in public divorced and getting along," Rubenstein said. "When I was a kid (he's 65), you said the word 'divorce' the same way everybody said the word 'cancer.' And they basically said, 'Here we are and we're having a good time,' and it changed people's attitudes toward divorce."

Then Cher got pregnant with Gregg Allman's child.

The larger she got, the more uneasy it was for Sonny and Cher to be onstage together.

"An uncomfortable audience felt the same way," Rubenstein writes. "The reunion show barely lasted two years."

Flashdance

FILE - In this April 18, 2005, file photo, Jennifer Beals arrives to the Film Society of Lincoln Center's Tribute to Dustin Hoffman in New York. Her role in the 1983 film "Flashdance" helped popularize aerobics wear, but also helped neutralize gender politics through fashion. It's mentioned in a new book, "The Looks of Love: 50 Moments in Fashion that Inspired Romance. (AP Photo/Diane Bondareff, File)

You can thank director Adrian Lyne and costume designer Michael Kaplan for moving along the casualization of America's dress code through this movie in 1983. It was high gloss and paper thin, Rubenstein writes, but it incorporated big shifts in youth culture, from sex to style.

With their curly manes, olive skin and dark brooding eyes, stars Jennifer Beals and Michael Nouri -- who played her boss and her love interest, Nick -- not only looked like they could be fraternal twins, but wore interchangeable outfits in identical colors. That, Rubenstein said, helped neutralize clothing as a source of gender power as their courtship unfolds.

Alex was gutsy in love and style, stomping around in her welder's boots by day and sliding up her short black leather skirt as she sat to slip off her lace bra under her torn sweatshirt after their first date. The scene had Nick bug-eyed in astonishment.

Michelle Williams

Australian actor Heath Ledger, left, and actress Michelle Williams arrive for the 78th Academy Awards on March 5, 2006, in Los Angeles. The dress Williams wore is considered one of the top red-carpet looks of all time and is included in a new book, "The Looks of Love: 50 Moments in Fashion that Inspired Romance."Chris Pizzello ~ Associated Press

At the 2006 Academy Awards, Sandra Bullock wore navy, Jennifer Lopez picked olive green, Amy Adams was in mocha brown and Meryl Streep donned taupe. And then there was Michelle Williams, on the arm of love Heath Ledger, in a Vera Wang chiffon and tulle gown of many folds declared one of the best Oscar dresses of all time.

It had delicate pleating along a low neckline and graceful folds, including a train that oozed sensuality with every step. But it was the standout color that killed, Rubenstein said. Wang called it "Bahamian yellow," and it was perfection against Williams' pale skin, platinum swept-back hair and bright red lips.

FILE - In this Jan. 19, 1998, file photo, a model wears an embroidered evening gown during a presentation for the Christian Dior 1998 Spring Summer high fashion collection designed by John Galliano in Paris. The collection is included in a new book, "The Looks of Love: 50 Moments in Fashion that Inspired Romance. (AP Photo/Michel Euler, File)

"There's something so beautiful and wonderful and tragic about that dress," Rubenstein said. "They were the perfect new Hollywood couple."

The two separated in late 2007, and Ledger died in January 2008 of an accidental drug overdose.