Marjorie

The navel-gazing luvvy world of showbusiness is about to raise a West End curtain on a play about the famously troubled production of the 1975 movie Jaws and the strained relationship of the two stars Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss which would later become known as one of Hollywood’s greatest feuds. The Shark is Broken.

  Dreyfuss has had a career of sparkling highs, becoming the youngest Oscar winner at 29, sailing through the standout movies of the 70s/80s/90s – American Graffiti, Jaws, The Competition, Stand by Me, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Down and Out in Beverly Hills, The Goodbye Girl, Tin Men, Stakeout, Another Stakeout, Always, What About Bob?

  Though he went seriously off the rails, into a haze of cocaine, hard-drinking and hell-raising until a near fatal car crash pulled him up short in 1982 He’s always had a reputation for being tricky to get along with.

  He was born 29 October 1947 6.07pm New York and grew up with a war-veteran and injured father from whom he was estranged when he died. He was diagnosed as bipolar when he was 11.

    His chart is more than unusually difficult especially in relationship to his father and childhood home – with Pluto Mars and Saturn conjunct in Leo which is hair-raising. So no surprises he would have difficulties in relations to his father and following that to certain other men. He also has three planets in intense Scorpio in his hard-working 6^th – Sun Mercury Venus. His Sun is opposition a Taurus Moon and square Mars Pluto and his Venus Mercury squares Saturn and Mars Pluto – and that is a tough furrow to plough. 

  He said of Robert Shaw “”In private, he was the kindest, gentlest, funniest guy you ever met. Then we’d walk to the set, and on our way to the set he was possessed by some evil troll, who would then make me his victim.”

 Robert Shaw, the veteran English actor, twenty years his senior, was born 9 August 1927, and had his Leo Sun conjunct Dreyfuss’ Mars Pluto which would stir up all of his early father issues; and Shaw’s Neptune was conjunct Dreyfuss’ Saturn for suspicion and doubt.   More pointedly Shaw’s Saturn in Sagittarius was conjunct Dreyfuss’s Jupiter on his Descendant, so he would be critical and squash his exuberance. Their relationship chart isn’t too tricky apart from a game-laying, tussle for the upper hand composite Jupiter opposition Pluto; and maybe a scratchy Moon opposition Mars.

  Given the hand of cards Dreyfuss was deal he has done not badly to stay afloat and succeed up to the levels he has. There was recently an allegation of historical sexual harassment which he contests furiously.

Stephanie Grisham, formerly embedded with Trump and Melania in the White House, joins the long list of escapees dishing the dirt. But more than most she’s being accused of hypocrisy in staying put, backing the lies in public and only belatedly deciding to spill the beans.

  As Press aide and chief of staff to the First Lady she spent more time working in a powerful position in close contact than any of the other tale-telling memoirists but she also bears more culpability. The general view is that indulging in public smearing of this sort won’t do her any favours.

  Born 23 July 1976, she’s had a chequered past being fired for cheating over expenses and subsequently for plagiarism (according to wiki). She is a Sun Leo, conjunct Saturn and widely conjunct Mercury and Venus with most trine Neptune and sextile Pluto – mega-ambitious, attention seeking. Her Leo planets also square Uranus, so she can be autocratic, not practising what she preaches. She has a Gemini Moon and Jupiter in indulgent, acquisitive Taurus.

  Her Jupiter is conjunct Melania’s Venus so good for fashion interests and public schmoozing. But her Mars is conjunct Melania’s South Node which is not helpful; and her Saturn squares Melania’s Taurus Sun Saturn, which is OK for business but cool.

  That is mirrored on their relationship chart with a composite Sun Saturn conjunction, which is being undermined at the moment into 2023 by tr Neptune square the composite Saturn. There is also a volatile Mars square Uranus which was under pressure long before the January 6^th Capitol Hill attack which was her exit point.

  Her relationship chart with Trump has a hostile and dominating composite Mars Pluto, so she’d be OK as long as she toed his line. Nothing new there. All covered over by Jupiter Venus icing sugar.  Her Leo planets sit on his 12^th house Pluto so he really would pull her strings. And her Jupiter is conjunct his Midheaven so she’d boost his ambitions and gain kudos and rewards for herself in the process.

  She will see hopes dashed this December and will have an emotionally rattled few weeks after the New Year and slipping and sliding through 2022.  She will get some morale boosts from tr Pluto trine her Jupiter but will have as many if not more minuses as pluses. Tr Pluto into Aquarius from 2023 will change her life irrevocably as it grinds her down for several years in opposition her Sun, square Uranus, then opposition her Saturn and the rest.

  It’s difficult to feel the remotest sympathy and while what she says is damaging the public has become desensitized to Trump stories.

Eric Zemmour, the far-right pundit, political journalist and writer is proving to be a surprise hit before he has even decided whether to run in next year’s French elections. His recent appearance in Paris was a sell-out and he has shot from nowhere to 15% in the polls. It’s not enough for a win but will dent Le Pen’s chances as he denounces the decadence of western civilisation, the threat of Islam and the risk of a civil war in a French society split along religious lines.

  Even the recent paparazzi coverage of him frolicking with a young assistant is being deemed an attempt to sparkle up his image though he has made a song and dance about being offended.

  He was born 31 August 1958 6.45am Montreuil, France, and has a 12th house Sun Pluto in Virgo  sextile Jupiter Neptune – communicative, intense, controlling and ambitious. He has an opinionated 9^th house Mars in Taurus – again only three degrees away from Algol. And a knowledgeable and can-be-self-righteous Saturn in Sagittarius.

  He seems too much of an outside shot to be worth considering – except so was Trump. And Zemmour does have the successful and ambitious tr Pluto square his Jupiter from mid March till late June next year, repeating on and off till late 2023. The election will be held on April 10^th with a second round on the 24^th if there is no clear winner. Admittedly tr Pluto will be square his tough-slog Sun/Saturn midpoint at the same time. But one way or another he’ll be boosted in confidence. This December and through January will also see him riding high.

  He’s certainly assured himself of a solid footing in the political landscape whatever happens.

The environmental zealots have surpassed themselves by blocking an ambulance taking a sick elderly woman to hospital after weeks of the police being seemingly incapable of clearing them off main roads.

  Roger Hallam, co-founder of Extinction Rebellion which is the umbrella organisation for the Insulate Britain road-blockers, said in an interview he would support stopping even dying patients in ambulances for his cause. Born 4 May 1966, he was formerly an organic farmer and has been studying for a PhD, researching how to achieve social change through civil disobedience and radical movements.

  An assertive and immensely stubborn Sun Mars in Taurus opposition Neptune in Scorpio and possibly Moon in Scorpio – with his North Node closely conjunct Algol (which seems to be a constant presence at the moment.) His Sun Mars are also trine Uranus Pluto in Virgo giving him an inclination to rock boats and set up revolutions. He’s also got a chilly Venus Saturn in Pisces in a see-saw square to Jupiter in Gemini.

  Nothing much is going right for him now and for the foreseeable future with Uranian upheavals and disruptions into 2023 as well as Eclipse challenges and Neptunian droop thereafter till after mid decade.

  Extinction Rebellion, 31 October 2018, will hiccup along until 2023 when it will, force majeure, have to rethink its future with tr Pluto square its Uranus. Its opportunistic, none-too-sensible Mars square Jupiter will be rattled up by the upcoming late 2021/2022 Eclipses.

There is an oddity about these fanatical groups – a bit like the animal liberation front – some justification for their grievances but wildly way over the top in their ways of making their point.

The fates have conspired to give Facebook the week from hell with a prolonged outage yesterday, wiping billions off share prices as well as a whistleblower accusing the company of placing “profit over safety” on primetime TV in advance of a hearing before US senators today. The six hour break in service was deemed to be an internal configuration fault which shut down not just the internet feed but also entry into the building for engineers trying to fix it.

     Francis Haugen, a former product manager, hired to help protect against election interference, who leaked a trove of internal company documents to the Wall Street Journal which have created its deepest crisis since the Cambridge Analytica scandal – has now stepped into the open. She said FB had lied to the public, exaggerating the progress it had made tackling hate, violence, and misinformation on its platform.

“There were conflicts of interest between what was good for the public and what was good for Facebook. Over and over again, [it] chose to optimise for its own interests, like making more money.” FB’s shares have dipped 13 per cent since the WSJ began publishing its series in mid-September.

  Mark Zuckerburg, 14 May 1984 2.39pm White Plains New York, whose Taurus Sun is conjunct Algol, with Venus close by, opposing Mars Moon Saturn in Scorpio isn’t one to panic or over-react to pressure. But he’s in a long run of tr Uranus hard aspects to his Scorpio/Taurus planets, jangling him this year, more so in 2022/23/24. The Eclipses from this November’s Taurus Lunar Eclipse and on through 2022 into 2023 will also rattle up a good going series of crises, so he’ll have to change whether he likes it or not. His Progressed Mars will conjunct his 2nd house Saturn in 2022 which could see a major financial setback.

  What is odd about the Facebook IPO chart, 18 May 2012 11.31am is the Jupiter in Taurus which tr Pluto is trine at the moment and should be instilling confidence not the reverse. Though admittedly tr Saturn square the Midheaven won’t help and there will be disappointments with tr Neptune hitting the financial Venus and Mars/Uranus midpoint earlier this year and throughout 2022.

  There’s also a further calamity from 2^nd to 10^th December this year which shows up on Zuckerburg and the IPO chart.

 The original FB chart, 4 February 2004, is jolted, jangled and nerve-stretched this year and next with the disruptive and uncertain tr Saturn square tr Uranus hitting on the Neptune Sun in Aquarius; with financial woes in 2022/23 from tr Neptune conjunct the Venus; and worse problems in 2023/24 as the dead-halt tr Pluto squares the Mars in Taurus.

Kate Couric, a household name for her US news presentation across all three big networks, has written a “scorched earth” memoir which has drawn heavy criticism. She slags off other women she has worked with in the business and excuses men accused of sexual harassment like Roger Ailes, Weinstein, Matt Lauer etc. Her bubbly girl-next-door image has been smashed to smithereens.

  She was born 7 January 1957 11.55pm New York with an ambitious Capricorn Sun Mercury in the 4^th in an assertive square to Mars in Aries in the 7^th – so she’s no slouch when it comes to pushing forward her point of view. She’s also got a wide Fire Grand Trine of Uranus in the 10^th (= suits a TV career) trine Saturn in Sagittarius trine Mars and Moon in Aries, which is not only hard-edged but a surfeit of Fire can be attention-seeking, self-involved and not overly sensitive to others’ needs. In total she has five Fire signs with Venus in Sagittarius as well.  

  One theory is her book is a manoeuvre to gain relevance after her career has moved away from mainstream headlines. It won’t do her too many favours with tr Neptune opposition her Solar Arc Midheaven and a jangled November over publication as tr Uranus squares her calamity-prone Mars/Saturn midpoint and December brings a hopes-dashed tr Pluto conjunct her Mars/Neptune. With worse through 2022.

  At the moment her Progressed Mars is exactly (to within minutes) conjunct her South Node in Taurus which kind of suggests a backward slide.

  She’ll bounce up again by 2024 but clearly this book won’t do it for her.

Internal ructions within the Democratic Party appear to be more of a risk to Joe Biden’s gargantuan economic package and term in office than the Republicans. Two pass-remarkable Democrats – Joe Manchin and Krysten Sinema – have set their faces against agreeing setting up a bruising month ahead of negotiations to find a compromise. Their motives are thought to be political self-preservation since they come from largely Republican strongholds. The New York Intelligencer commented “They are, in effect, holding the president’s priorities hostage to their personal whims—-“their stubbornness in the face of contemporary challenges reveals the bottomless emptiness of their brand of centrist politics.”

   Both, oddly enough, should get on with Biden. Sinema, 12 July 1976 12.10 pm Tucson, AZ, has her Cancer Sun, Mercury, Venus conjunct Biden’s Jupiter and her Jupiter opposition his Sun; though he controlling Pluto does sit in Biden’s 10^th which will gives her an eye for pulling his strings and there are a few scratchy aspects. Joe Manchin, 24 August 1947, has his Jupiter conjunct Biden’s Mercury and Sun.

  But the relationship charts indicate that Manchin and Biden will have a disappointing relationship this year and right through 2022 with disruptions and upheavals in January and February especially.

  Biden with Sinema looks no more cheering with discouraging Saturn blocks till late this month; and undermining Neptune hard aspects to the composite Jupiter and Sun through 2022 into 2023. So she’s likely to be a continuing problem.

For previous post on Biden see September 22 2021. It indicates it’ll be a long, fractious haul to the end of November.

One of the several mysteries around the when-will-it-go-into-the-desert-and-die saga of Prince Andrew is his mother’s continuing and obvious support, now footing a mega-million pound legal bill. For someone who has put duty to the crown above and beyond anything else in her long reign, her public devotion seems odd.

  Their relationship chart is drenched in Neptune with a composite Moon Neptune opposition Sun – so illusions, delusions and wishful thinking run rife. It took the full might of the tr Pluto in Capricorn square tr Uranus in Aries opposition tr Saturn in Libra in 2011 to build up sufficient power to make it clear that his associations with dodgy billionaires and politically corrupt individuals made his Trade post untenable. She would have had to OK the decision but it took two years plus before she eventually gave in. By that time he’d sold his Sunningdale marital home way above market price to a relative of the Kazakhstan President.

   Their relationship chart also has a Mars opposition Pluto indicating the immoveable hierarchy of the monarchical power structure. That aspect appears in other Royal relationships with the Queen as well – Charles for one, Princess Margaret also, Prince William in a muted form; ditto Meghan; but not Harry, Edward, Princess Anne.

  In Andrew’s case it is entrenched with the composite Pluto on the IC and Mars conjunct the composite MC – which arguably traps both of them. When he gave the ill-considered Newsnight interview in November 2019, tr Pluto was sitting exactly on the Queen’s Capricorn Ascendant so it was always going to affect her image. Tr Saturn following close behind began a slow descent into and through her 1^st house which can be a time of misjudgements when psychological quirks are exposed.

   Tr Uranus was also heading to rattle the composite Mars opposition Pluto with Andrew. With the scandal showing no signs of abating, he was finally forced to step down from all public roles in May 2020 when tr Uranus was exactly square their composite Pluto. Tr Saturn has now taken up the baton and will be opposition the composite Pluto and conjunct the composite Mars for the final time from mid November to mid December this year. And tr Uranus retrogrades to square the composite Midheaven from 29^th December to early February 2022.

  With a chart as fixed as the Queen’s nothing happens impulsively or immediately – but she’ll not be able to withstand the amount of pounding her relationship chart with Andrew is taking.

  What is intriguing is that Andrew’ Moon at 25 Scorpio sits on her Midheaven and dutiful Saturn – and is exactly where her father George V1’s Moon was. So there may be resonances of her father that connect her – though they are wildly different personalities. Andrew’ 2^nd house acquisitive Pluto is conjunct George V1’s South Node – so he does link in to a shadow side of the previous generation.

  She’ll have to throw him to the wolves at some point or end up wrecking her life’s work.   

The volcanic eruption on La Palma of the Canary Islands shows no sign of subsiding with further “intense” activity from a “much more aggressive” Cumbre Vieja volcano, opening up two new fissures, sending molten rock toward the sea. Hundreds of properties have been destroyed since September 19^th and thousands had to flee their homes. Scientists estimate it has so far emitted 80m cubic metres of molten rock and a new area of solidified lava extends over more than 20ha (50 acres).

  The previous Lunar Eclipse in late May located to the Canaries has disruptive Uranus on the Midheaven, which makes sense of such an event, square Saturn on the Descendant; with the brutally destructive Pluto opposition Mars in place as well.

   There are two possible dates for the Canary Islands though they should be treated with caution – 4 September 1479 and 12 January 1503, both JC.

  The 1503 chart has the Solar Arc Jupiter opposition Pluto squaring the Sun now – which would describe a mega-powerful event.  And on a previous eruption, 24 June 1949, the Solar Arc Sun was square the Neptune – Neptune often being found around natural disasters which leave confusion in their wake.

  The 1479 chart was more precise about the 1949 eruption having tr Neptune square the Solar Arc Pluto. At the moment – or at least this year – tr Pluto is trine the Solar Arc Uranus Neptune.

  The two classic volcano/earthquake signatures are Pluto Neptune and Uranus Neptune.

Making a joke out of strip tease has been a serious business for Heather Sweet, a small town Michigan gal, who morphed into Dita von Teese, burlesque dancer extraordinaire. She grew up fascinated by the old, Golden Age-era Hollywood films, trained as a ballet dancer, indulged her fetish for lingerie by selling it in a store before moving on to become a stripper. Her career has been varied with her famous stage routines winning her the ‘Queen of the Burlesque’ title, as well as appearing in softcore and hardcore porn films, and as a bondage model as well as bit parts in mainstream TV, well-received films, music videos and fashion modelling.  

  There’s now a streaming film Night of Teese, going out tonight with guest performers male burlesque artist Jett Adore, hula-hoop virtuoso Marawa and the not-so-young Dirty Martini and Perle Noire.

  Heather was born 28 September 1972 in Rochester, MI, and has an intense chart with a Libra Sun conjunct Pluto and Mars in late Virgo square Jupiter. The Jupiter Pluto will give her confidence which a suppressed Sun, Mars, Pluto would otherwise have lacked. Mars Pluto with her Mars square Saturn as well will also boost her interest in bondage.

She’s got a highlighted Venus in flamboyant Leo on the focal point of a trine of Saturn (Moon) in Gemini trine Uranus – innovative, showy, emotionally cool.

  Clearly smart with a sense of humour, she’s made the best out of a difficult chart which could have sent her off down a very different track into dangerous territory.

 She was admittedly with Marilyn Manson at one point for seven years, married for one, but it fell apart due to his drug-taking and infidelity.

 That connection fed into her attraction for high-risk situations with his Pluto conjunct her Mars and his Uranus Jupiter conjunct her Sun Pluto. But it was always a volatile match with a composite no-compromise Mars Uranus conjunction and a blow hot, blow cold composite Venus Saturn opposition Jupiter Sun.