Referenced By / Love Story

Film

• The final lines of What's Up, Doc?. (Also an Actor Allusion, as Howard is played by Ryan O'Neal.)
  Judy: Love means never having to say you're sorry.
  Howard: That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard.

Literature

• In I Think I Love You, Carrie tells Petra her reading glasses make her look like Ali MacGraw in Love Story. Petra isn't convinced.

Live-Action TV

• In an episode of 3rd Rock from the Sun, Dick is shown crying while reading the book version of Love Story. When asked what he's so upset about, he replies, "I'm sorry, I just can't believe what passed for literature in the '70s."
• In The Partridge Family episode "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Partridge," Laurie's boyfriend plans to take her to see "Love Story." Keith thinks it's too racy and pressures him into taking her to a Western instead.

Sports

• Canadian figure skater Matthew Markell performed to the Love Story soundtrack for his long program during the 2018-2019 competitive season.
• As did Canadians Sale and Pelletier of the infamous 2002 Olympics scandal. To the point that they were actually playing the roles of Oliver and Jenny.

Western Animation

• The Simpsons:
  • In "Catch 'Em If You Can", Homer and Marge rent Love Story for the family to watch, but Bart and Lisa keep heckling the actors, and Bart turns on the TV's picture-in-picture function to watch The Krusty the Clown Show.
    Oliver: Love means never having to say...
    Krusty: A WHOLE CANOE MADE OF BOLOGNA?!
  • The episode "Faith Off" has Homer receive a letter from the college he went to back in "Homer Goes to College," putting himself in Oliver's role.
    Homer: Finally, a chance to relive my golden college years.
    Lisa: Dad, you only took one course.
    Homer: Remember my affair with Ali MacGraw? She used to call me "preppy." Then she died.

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