Ben Stiller, the actor, comedian, and filmmaker, known for his blend of slapstick humour and sharp wit, leader of the ‘Frat Pack’, has produced a memento to his parents, actor-comedians Jerry Stiller and Anna Meara and a showbusiness childhood – “ a lot of traveling, a lot of late nights — not what you’d call traditional.” He reflects on the problem left by his parents sometimes not being there for him because of career pressures and regrets that he himself was not around for his own children because of being away on film sets. He and his wife Christine Taylor separated for three years but reunited in 2020.
Ben rose to fame through comedies such as Zoolander and is known for Meet the Parents, the Royal Tenebaums, the Madagascar franchise amongst many others, with his films grossing more than $2.6 billion and earning multiple awards. As a child he was taken on to film sets and started performing when young as well as making Super 8 movies. For the past 10 years Ben Stiller has primarily worked as a television director and showrunner on Escape at Dannemora and Severance.
He was born 30 November 1965 5.35 pm New York (from memory) with a hard-working 6th house Sagittarius Sun conjunct Antares, one of the four “royal stars”. His Sun is square a Pisces Moon conjunct Saturn in his 10th house. Both Sun and Moon tied into Saturn suggests both parents put work first and indulgence second which would give him self-discipline in later life but was not exactly nurturing. A 10th house Moon is suited to a public career and Saturn in the 10th is a good executive and organiser which will be why he has transitioned over to the directorial side of the business. Plus he has the restless, chaotic and in constant-upheaval Uranus Pluto in Virgo in his domestic 4th house of childhood and beyond.
His generally upbeat persona comes from Jupiter in Gemini on his Ascendant plus his Sagittarius Sun, which latter is often a comedian’s sign.
The write ups on the astrological meaning of Antares are somewhat dramatic but it does appear to make individuals tough, belligerent and pugnacious, giving mental alertness, strategic ability and courage. Other Sun Antares types – Mark Twain, Pablo Escobar, Zoë Kravitz, Woody Allen, Winston Churchill, Gianni Versace, William Blake, Britney Spears, Andrew Tate, Marina Abramović.
His father, Jerry Stiller, 8 June 1922, was a Sun Gemini with a Fire Grand Trine of Venus Mars in Leo trine Uranus Jupiter in Aries trine Saturn in Sagittarius – Air Fire, enthusiastic but not always realistic.
His mother, Anna Meara, 20 September 1929 a Sun Virgo square Saturn with an Aries Moon perhaps conjunct Uranus and a super-determined Pluto square Mars Mercury in Libra with her Mars trine Jupiter. She would be a full-on personality, possibly the more difficult parent.
Ben’s relationship with his father would be high vitality and better balanced. With his father’s adventurous Jupiter Uranus falling in Ben’s career 10th and his Saturn in Ben’s 6th giving him a work ethic.
His bond with his mother looks cooler and a touch aggravated with a composite Sun Venus square Saturn and a strained yod of Mars sextile Saturn inconjunct Uranus. Her Sun fell in Ben’s 4th and her Saturn sat on his Descendant, not making for easy togetherness.
It’s a tricky paradox to accept – that success comes out of dysfunctional childhoods. And the lacks which hurt early on turn out to build strengths for later use in career terms if not in bringing up the next generation of children.