Five decades of Cher outfits

Cher shows off her Bob Mackie black-sequined gown after winning the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role as the superstitious young widow of "Moonstruck," at the 60th Annual Academy Awards, April 12, 1988 in Los Angeles.

The entertainer has sold 100 million albums worldwide, but Cher is not just known for her voice. Her fashion - with many outfits credited to her longtime designer Mackie - has made a statement (sometimes loudly) of Cher's unique sense of style, color, show-biz glamor, and an outsized sense of humor.

By CBSNews.com senior producer David Morgan

Cher (Cherilyn Sarkisian) met Salvatore "Sonny" Bono in the early 1960s, when Bono was working for record producer Phil Spector. The two sang backup vocals on a number of songs (including "Be My Baby" by the Ronettes, and the Righteous Brothers' "You've Lost That Loving Feeling") before recording their own covers.

Initially billed as Caesar and Cleo, Sonny and Cher recorded "Baby Don't Go" in 1964, and had their first big hit with "I Got You Babe," from their 1965 album, "Look at Us."

A publicity photo of Sonny & Cher for their 1967 comedy, "Good Times," a sketch comedy film with musical numbers directed by William Friedkin.

Cher told Anthony Mason that in the early years of Sonny & Cher they were banned from TV shows "because of the way we looked ... People forget it was a time where, you know, Steve and Eydie Gorme were doing one thing, and The Beatles had nice little hairdos and little round collars. Hippies wouldn't be in for a long time. And Sonny and I were wearing Eskimo boots and elephant bells."

"Whose idea was that, by the way?" Mason asked.

"It was mine," Cher said. "I had two friends, Bridget and Colleen, and they were making these things. And we got together [and][ we would just sew all the time. And no matter what I put Sonny in, he'd just do it. He just loved it. Just thought it was the most fun thing in the world. He would wear anything."

Cher performs on "The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour," May 19, 1967.

Sonny Bono and Cher, photographed June 7, 1971. Their CBS series, "The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour," debuted in August 1971 and and ran for four seasons.

A performance by Sonny and Cher, on "The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour" (1972).

Sonny and Cher appear on "The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour," February 10, 1973.

Cher and designer Bob Mackie first crossed paths when Sonny & Cher appeared on "The Carol Burnett Show" in the 1960s. When the singing duo got their own series in 1971, Cher asked Mackie to design her outfits. Their collaboration continues to this day.

A 1972 portrait of Cher for the CBS variety series, "The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour."

Cher said that before her variety show, "Sonny and I wore clothes, but they were so kind of unisex, you know? Some people don't even know I was a girl!

"Then, Bob Mackie went, 'Okay, here I have my perfect hanger, and I'm gonna have the best time of my life.' And then it started to be a big deal for me because it was a big deal for people. It gets interwoven in you."

A 1972 portrait of Cher for "The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour."

Cher wears a Bob Mackie gown and headdress on "The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour," January 18, 1973.

A 1972 portrait of Cher for "The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour."

Cher performs on her variety show, "The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour."

"Bob [Mackie] used to say - and I always felt it - 'There's nothing that I can put her in that she doesn't feel fine in,'" Cher told Anthony Mason. "And I always felt fine. I would just look and go, 'Oh, that's fun.' I have this thing about, 'Oh, that's fun,' or, 'Oh, that's beautiful.' "

Cher with Chad Everett in a skit from "The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour" (1972).

A 1972 portrait of Cher for "The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour."

Cher performs on "The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour" (1972).

A 1972 portrait of Cher.

Cher performs on her variety show, "The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour."

"It's a double-edged sword," Cher said of her outrageous costumes. "It's a good thing, and then it's a bad thing, too."

"Where you feel like you have to top yourself somehow?" asked Anthony Mason.

"Or keep up. I mean, I topped myself a lot, you know? And now, I'm just treading," she laughed. "I'm happy if I can just tread!"

"She was a scamp, a camp,
and a bit of a tramp.
She was a V-A-M-P ... Vamp."

Cher as Cleopatra in a blackout skit on "The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour."

Their variety show shut down when the couple divorced in 1974, and each went their separate TV ways - with "The Sonny Comedy Revue" and "Cher." The two re-teamed for the short-lived "The Sonny & Cher Show" in 1976.

Bob Mackie designed this long-sleeve full-length black satin dress with a black feather overcoat for Cher's performance of "How Long Has This Been Going On?" for the March 9, 1975, episode of "The Cher Show."

Design sketches by Bob Mackie for costumes to be worn by Cher: As Mother Goose (1975), and for a 1978 TV special, "Cher...Special."

Carol Burnett and guest star Cher on "The Carol Burnett Show," August 15, 1975.

Elton John, Cher, Flip Wilson and Bette Midler, in a publicity photo for CBS' "Cher!" (1975).

Cher as Laverne, the trashy, gum-chewing character that originated on "The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour," with Flip Wilson as Geraldine, on "Cher!" (1975).

Tom Jones and Cher perform on "The Sonny and Cher Show," October 28, 1976.

The headdress of an outfit worn by Cher in 1978, on display at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas in May 2008.

Cher was a headliner on "The Monte Carlo Show," a 1980 variety series that also spotlighted European talent.

Anthony Mason asked Cher to comment on a remark made about her wardrobe: "I think the reason she wears those gowns is to protect who she is, to distract people."

"I don't know. That's very smart," she replied.

Was it correct? "No," she said. " 'Cause clothes don't do anything. Clothes are nothing. Clothes are pretty. They're just to keep you warm, to keep you cool, or to be attractive."

Cher, barely keeping warm in a costume by Bob Mackie, on the cover of "Take Me Home," her 1979 disco album.

A publicity photo of Cher circa 1979.

Not being nominated for her performance in "Mask" may have been as upsetting to Cher as the Academy's reminder to nominees about a dress code for the Oscar broadcast. She wore a Bob Mackie creation to the Academy Awards, where she presented the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor to Don Ameche. "As you can see, I did receive my Academy booklet on how to dress like a serious actress," she told the crowd.

Cher recalled, "Stanley Donen said, 'Oh my God, this is the best' - I was going out with Josh Donen at the time, and Josh was, like, totally freaked out when I walked out of the bathroom in this. And Stanley went, 'Oh, she's fabulous.'"

Cher arrives for the 70th Annual Academy Awards March 23, 1998 in Los Angeles, Calif.

Cher performs at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas for a live HBO special, Aug. 29, 1999.

Cher performs at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas for a live HBO special, Aug. 29, 1999.

Cher performs such hits as "Believe" and "Strong Enough" on stage at Zurich Indoor Stadium, November 3, 1999.

The cover of Cher's 2001 album, "Living Proof."

Cher poses during the promotion of her new album, "Living Proof," November 14, 2001 in Madrid, Spain.

Frank Micelotta/ABC/ImageDirect/Getty Images

Cher performs on the 29th Annual American Music Awards at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, Calif., January 9, 2002.

Frank Micelotta/ImageDirect/Getty Images

Cher performs on "VH1 Divas Las Vegas," a concert to benefit the VH1 Save the Music Foundation, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, May 23, 2002.

Cher is dressed for the "Tribute to the '60s" portion of her "Living Proof: The Farewell Tour," at Toronto's Air Canada Arena, June 12, 2002.

Cher and company perform on the singer's "Living Proof Tour" during the Grand Opening weekend of the Mohegan Sun Hotel & Casino in Uncasville, Conn., June 21, 2002.

Recording artist-actress Cher performs in concert at the Staples Center, December 2, 2002 in Los Angeles, Calif.

Singer and actress Cher performs on stage during her "Farewell Tour" on May 21, 2004 in London.

Singer-actress Cher performs on stage during her "Farewell Tour" on May 21, 2004 in London.

Mattel issued collector dolls of Cher wearing miniature Bob Mackie creations, including this Native American Fantasy costume.

A gown owned by Cher on display at Sotheby's on September 4, 2006 in London, England. The gown is part of a lot from Cher's personal collection that was auctioned, a portion of the proceeds going to the Cher Charitable Foundation.

Cher performs at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace, November 9, 2009, in Las Vegas.

Singer Cher performs onstage during the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards at NOKIA Theatre L.A. LIVE on September 12, 2010 in Los Angeles, California.

Cher performs on stage as part of the 27th "Dance on the Pier" party during NYC Pride 2013 on June 30, 2013 in New York City.

A phoenix dress and a keyboard motif jumpsuit, both designed by Bob Mackie for Cher, are on view at a public auction preview September 29, 2006 at Sotheby's in Los Angeles.

"How many Bob Mackie dresses have you worn?" correspondent Anthony Mason asked Cher. "It must be like hundreds? Is it thousands?"

"How many stripes on a zebra?" she laughed.

By CBSNews.com senior producer David Morgan

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