Sonny Liston in Sunnyland

Washington has its share of misinformation, exaggeration, and urban myth.  One absolutely true legend is the story of heavyweight boxing champion Sonny Liston stopping in little old Sunnyland with car trouble.

It was August 3, 1963.  Liston, coming off two decisive knockouts of the popular champion Floyd Patterson, was negotiating to fight the new face of boxing, Cassius Clay (later Muhammad Ali).

He was on his way to visit his manager, Jack Nilan, in Philadelphia to discuss the terms of the fight, which somehow took him up Route 24 through Sunnyland.  Driving east into Sunnyland, his car blew a head gasket, and he stopped at Wernsman’s Standard at the far west end of town.  Wernsman’s was located in the building which later housed The Doll House for many years.

Liston did not have a good reputation at the time, which in later years has been attributed to racial stereotypes pinned to him by 1960s media, but during this stop in Sunnyland, he spent over an hour chatting with and signing autographs for the throngs of people who showed up to greet him.  He was nothing like the man he had been portrayed to be.

Liston stayed overnight at a Peoria hotel and then flew to Philadelphia to meet his manager.

The Liston/Clay fight eventually took place in early 1964, with Clay being declared the winner by knockout when Liston failed to answer the bell in the 7th round.  A rematch between the two fighters in late 1964 led to a 1st round knockout by Clay.  Liston’s career was never the same after the defeats, beating many journeyman fighters over the next few years until his death of unknown causes in 1971.

Pictured below is Sonny Liston & Milt Wernsman: