The Gipper May Help Astrology Business Score a Few Points

The nation’s astrologers might thank their lucky stars for President Reagan.

After all, in a forthcoming book by former White House Chief of Staff Donald T. Regan, to be excerpted next week in Time magazine, Regan reveals that Nancy Reagan had a personal interest in the shifting alignment of the heavenly bodies. And Mrs. Reagan’s interest reportedly played a role in the scheduling of some of President Reagan’s appointments.

“All this Reagan stuff should do us some good,” said Robert W. Cooper, executive secretary of the Tempe, Ariz.-based American Federation of Astrologers.

As astrology moves to the front page of the nation’s newspapers from its usual spot in the horoscope columns, attention is focused on an age-old preoccupation that today is also a multimillion-dollar business.

Computers have taken over the once-tedious job of mapping the arrangement of the planets and stars at the time of one’s birth. Supermarkets and pharmacies still stock horoscope books by the hundreds and book stores report an enduring, if not booming, business in astrology.

These days, however, other hobbies may be more hip. And gone from the nation’s singles bars is the often-mocked one-liner, “What’s your sign?”

Meanwhile, those who specialize in astrological readings are not all that keen about their craft now being linked--in any way--with Ronald Reagan.

“People will soon be blaming the state of the country on astrologers,” said Shania Light, a Beverly Hills astrologer whose Yellow Pages advertisement refers to herself as “psychic of the chic.” But, she said, “it’s not us, but people like George Shultz, George Bush and Reagan who are responsible.”

And, of course, skeptics continue to say that the astrology business is bunk. “This is absolutely a lot of spinach,” said Dr. Joyce Brothers, the psychologist and radio talk show host.

As for astrologers’ growing use of computers, she said in an interview, “when you put garbage into a computer, you get garbage out of it.” When people cannot deal with their expectations, she said, they become more anxious to “divine” what the future will bring.

An estimated 50 million Americans know their astrological signs--and a majority of that number are believed to read their horoscopes daily.

Other Presidents Believed

“Probably every major newspaper in America runs an astrology column,” said Sydney Omarr, whose astrological column, carried by the Los Angeles Times Syndicate, appears in 300 newspapers. What’s more, his 10 books on the subject have sold more than 30 million copies.

Omarr says that Reagan is not the first American President to watch his horoscope. He said that George Washington and Theodore Roosevelt also kept tabs on their horoscopes. And Timothy Beckley, publisher of books on astrology, said that Abraham Lincoln also had astrological interests.

“Whether times are good or bad, there is always interest in astrology,” said Warren Tabatch, vice president for production at Astro Signs, which publishes a series of miniature astrological magazines sold mostly at supermarkets. Up to 500,000 of these 2 1/2- by 3-inch magazines are sold each month, he said.

It is also an industry that is fast-becoming high tech. That is, many of the nation’s estimated 5,000 professional astrologers--who make their full-time living at the trade--have turned to computers for help.

With the aid of computers, astrology has evolved from a business that once required many hours of tediously mapping the arrangement of the planets and stars at the time of one’s birth into a computer-generated profession that is nearly as dependent on computers as the airline industry.

“The astrological community has taken advantage of the computer more than any other profession,” said Neil Michelsen, chairman of the National Council of Geocosmic Research and founder of Astro Computing Services, a San Diego-based publisher of astrological books and charts. “As soon as microcomputers were in consumers hands in the 1970s, there was astrological software for astrologers.”

Indeed, there are at least a half-dozen manufacturers of computer software who have seen business grow steadily in recent years. Most of them are heavily dependent on mail-order sales.

One of these manufacturers is Astrolabe, a computer software company in Cape Cod, Mass., which sold nearly $600,000 worth of its $300 computer programs last year. The software helps astrologers produce and interpret astrological charts.

There is also interest in using astrology to help predict economic futures.

And that is a relatively new direction that some astrologers seem to be taking. “We’re branching into the stock market field,” said Patricia White, vice president of Astrolabe. “People on Wall Street are very pragmatic. They’re open to anything that makes money.”

Indeed, so-called financial astrology has evolved into its own mini-industry, with several newsletters on the market, including one published by Ray Merriman, a broker at Prudential-Bache Securities who has written extensively on astrology and who commonly uses it in his market forecasts.

A far cry all this is from the 16th Century French astrologer, Nostradamus, who studied the planets and stars and made all sorts of wide-reaching predictions at the time. One of those predictions was that an alignment of the heavenly bodies supposedly would result in a major earthquake in California this month.

Some companies are still making money off of Nostradamus’ projections, although astronomers say the predictions for the California quake, for instance, are based on incorrect information on the position of the planets.

Several National Conventions

For example, more than 80,000 copies of “Nostradamus’ Unpublished Prophecies” have been sold over the past year by a New Brunswick, N.J., publisher, Inner Light Publications, said Beckley, the company’s president.

But not even Nostradamus could have predicted the widespread interest that Americans seem to have in astrology.

There are several national astrological conventions scheduled later this summer. More than 1,000 people are expected to plunk down $185 apiece to attend the United Astrology Convention in Florida. And on the Fourth of July, the American Federation of Astrologers is scheduled to host its own 50th anniversary bash at the Las Vegas Hilton. Some 2,500 are expected to pay about $125 each to attend that conference, said Robert W. Cooper, executive secretary of the group.

New Interests

And some of those who teach the craft say they have more willing students than they have time to teach. “Astrology is 100% accurate, but astrologers are not,” said Sylvia Sherman, founder of the American School of Astrology in West Orange, N.J. She said she has taught more than 300 students at a price of $45 per half-hour lesson.

In some circles, astrology has given way to new interests. “People have gotten lost in crystals and channeling and don’t talk as much about astrology,” said a longtime clerk at the Bodhi Tree Bookstore on Melrose Avenue in West Los Angeles. The store has a wide collection of New Age and astrology books as well as more traditional books on religion, health and psychology.

“Astrology has slowed down in the last few years,” said the clerk who asked not be identified. There is still regular demand for astrological calendars. But the demand for astrology books isn’t what it once was, he said, adding that the news coverage of astrology may prompt some new interest.

“When I first started 11 years ago, everyone knew their sign and exactly what was happening in the sky,” he noted. “Now those people are still there--just not as many. Or at least they don’t talk about it.

“People don’t ask what sign you are, they ask about what crystal you are wearing.”

Jesus Sanchez contributed to this story.