Sugar Ray Leonard: on his new wife Bernadette, his failed marriage, and his new acting career - Cover Story

Ebony, Nov, 1993 by Lynn Norment

Though Luther Vandross is noted for his romantic ballads, love was not on Sugar Ray Leonard's mind when he was introduced to Bernadette Robi at the star crooner's concert in 1988. At the time, the five-time boxing champ was separated from Juanita Leonard, his wife of 10 years -- the mother of his two sons whom he has known for more than 20 years -- and admits that "he was going through a lot of changes." Dating again, he says, was "the last thing on my mind."

So when saxophonist Kenny G introduced him to the beautiful Los Angeles model and actress, the boxing legend who has traveled around the world several times wasn't overwhelmed. But Bernadette, the 35-year-old daughter of Paul Robi of the original Platters and his wife, Martha Robi of Argentina, did inspire him to call. The two got acquainted mostly via long distance, for he was still living in Maryland at the time. They tried to get together on several occasions, but Leonard was a no-show three times.

"I was a little taken aback," Bernadette says of being stood up repeatedly, "but I knew what he was dealing with at the time. I didn't expect to meet someone and to immediately be his whole focus. But after that third attempt at a date, he said he'd meet me at this dinner party in Venice Beach. And I said: |Oh, no! I'll come pick you up.'"

That was the critical turning point, when the relationship started getting serious. But it still took the champ a while to open up and trust his new friend. "I was never too talkative," admits Leonard, relaxing on the spacious patio of his palatial estate in posh Pacific Palisades outside Los Angeles. "I was still an introvert. But she stuck with me. Then I kept seeing the beauty in her, not external but internal. She has a genuine concern for people, especially kids, especially dogs. She loves animals."

"He and I just sort of grew together," adds Bernadette, former wife of NFL star Lynn Swann. "I was very concerned about his ex-wife and his two kids. And I didn't want to do anything to upset that situation. I tried to be real low-key. As time passed, we grew closer and closer. We kept growing together. We were really friends."

Two years ago, the two friends moved into a Santa Monica condominium. And one night last spring, out of the blue, he proposed marriage.

"Actually, I was on my back," he says.

"Looking at the ceiling," she adds.

"Yes, I was gazing at the ceiling."

"And he said, |Let's get married.' And I said, |Ray, no we can't just get married tomorrow. It takes time to plan a wedding.' He didn't know."

"No, I didn't know that it takes six or seven months to plan a wedding," Leonard chimes in. "I just figured that when you ask, you get married the same day. That's how they do it in Vegas, right?"

The couple were married in August in a fairy tale ceremony held in the picturesque gardens of their new home. Less than a week after returning from a honeymoon in Hawaii and a quick business still aglow as they show visitors around the breathtaking grounds of the 10,000 square-foot Georgian-style mansion they moved into a couple of months before the wedding. It has six bedrooms, a solarium, a game room, an exercise room, a sauna, and a wine cellar. The gated grounds include a tennis court, a swimming pool with a bath house, a fountain and a greenhouse.

Thousands of pink roses adorned the asphalt court on that incredibly clear August day when it served as a banquet garden for the 230 wedding guests that included boxer Tommy Hearns, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver, Vanna White, Holly Robinson and O. J. Simpson. Take 6 sang a touching "Bless This House" during the lovely ceremony.

For many, the publicity surrounding the nuptials was the first good news they'd heard in several years about the legendary fighter. There had been snatches about the divorce from Juanita Leonard (who last December married Atlanta Braves player Otis Nixon) in which there had been allegations of physical abuse and drug use. And then there was that 1991 final losing bout with a much younger Terry Norris, after which Leonard, who had made three outstanding comebacks, declared that he was really retiring, for good.

Though these major battles are behind him, Sugar Ray Leonard is far from down and out. And far from broke. No, he says, Juanita did not get all his money in the divorce settlement. At age 37, Leonard is still a wealthy man with enormous energy, a man with a mission, a man, as he puts it, of dreams. And a man in love.

But there was a time in the not-too-distant past when he thought he'd never love a woman again, a time when he didn't even want to think about it.

"No, I never thought I'd get married again after my first marriage," he admits. "It's just so unfortunate. Anyone can make allegations, and those allegations hit the front page. But once you are exonerated, there is a slight mention on the back cover. So there is no justice. So how do you get your respect back? I didn't want to go through Hurricane Andrew again."