Charting the rising signs for astrology

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Kansas City Chiefs will be clashing on solid ground today. But could the key to who wins the Super Bowl be found somewhere out there, in the solar system??

Astrologer Andrea Mallis – nicknamed "The Sports Sorceress" – believes she can forecast how Super Bowl Day will go for the opposing quarterbacks, by studying their zodiac signs and horoscopes.

She showed correspondent Rita Braver the chart for the Super Bowl, February 7, 2021, in Tampa, Florida. For the Buccaneers' Tom Brady, who is a Leo? "High energy, positive development in your career, effective and confident, strong health, eager to achieve," said Mallis.

The Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes is a Virgo: "Confident, purposeful, powerful, can further his ambitions."

Astrology goes back thousands of years: Ancient Mesopotamians, Babylonians and Greeks all studied the sky for meaning, and it's been a staple of American pop culture, from drama and comedy to music.

But how does astrology work?

"Astrology is the practice of looking at planet alignments in the sky to interpret how our lives are affected here on Planet Earth," said Tracey Rogers. "When you're born, not only is the sun in a zodiac sign, but so, too, is the moon  and the planets Mercury and Venus and Mars and all the planets in our solar system, and each planet contributes to your personality."

Astrologers like Rogers are not psychics or fortune tellers who claim to have special mental powers or intuition. Modern astrologers have software programs and reference books.

She showed Braver her ephemeris: "It's a database that shows where all the planets in the sky are positioned at any given moment."

Rogers, who is also a life coach, charges $145 to interpret charts she draws up based on the time, date and place of birth, plus current astrological conditions, for her clients. "Many folks want to know, how's my love life? How are things playing out for me on the career front?" she said.

Astrology has plenty of believers. The late first lady Nancy Reagan reportedly used an astrologer to help determine when President Reagan should travel or make certain political moves.

And yes, astrologers are well aware that many people consider their life's work a joke – pure hokum.

Braver asked, "What do you say to a skeptic, someone who's never tried it?"

"Get a reading!" Rogers laughed. "Sign up!"

And many people have signed up in this year of uncertainty. According to Rogers, "I've had my busiest year since I started doing this for a living fulltime."

She's not alone – the Organization for Professional Astrology (yes, there is one) says membership went up 28% in 2020. Astrology apps, websites, and even merchandise sales are all booming.

Jessica Pels, editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan magazine, said, "In March 2020 when the pandemic hit and we were all locked down, our traffic to astrology content spiked by 75%. We published 645 pieces of astrology content on our website last year, and had 25 million page views to them."

Pels said millennial women are particularly drawn to astrology.

Braver asked, "No one really pretends it's science, right? So, why do people have faith in it?"

"Young people especially are very open to anything that gives them a sense of security right now, and aren't necessarily judgmental about the fact that it comes in this sort of alternative form," Pels replied.

"Why do you use astrology in the pages of your magazine to predict people's sex lives?" asked Braver.

Pels said, "Astrology is about empowerment, it's about fun, it's about enjoyment, and of course [sex] is one of the many things in young people's lives that is fun and is empowering." 

And the astrology explosion comes despite the fact that many astrologers completely missed the havoc that the pandemic would wreak in 2020.

"It's a great year," Susan Miller foretold last January to WCBS' Andrea Grymes and Cindy Hsu. "There's lots going on and it will be a prosperous year."

Miller is considered the doyenne of American astrologers, her website and app said to reach 17 million readers a year. She has advised celebrities from Cameron Diaz to Pharrell Williams.

But as for the pandemic? She told Braver, "Had I known Pluto causes viruses and he was meeting with Jupiter, who expands everything he touches …"

Miller readily admits that she did not see it coming: "None of us saw it. But neither did the CIA or the World Health Organization. We didn't see it coming."

But Miller still insists that astrology can have benefits for those who come to her to forecast their futures: "I give them a hope, a feeling of excitement, of possibility. My job is to show the whole part of life and to make it richer and happier for you."

So, who will end up happy after the Super Bowl?  Back to you, "Sports Sorceress" Andrea Mallis: "I think it looks a little more favorable for the Chiefs," she said. "But again, kind of a nagging feeling like, 'But there's Tom Brady, it's Tom Brady, it's Tom Brady!'"

     
For more info:

• Andrea Mallis, The Sports Sorceress (virgoinservice.com)
• Tracey Rogers, Astrologer and Life Coach
• Susan Miller (astrologyzone.com)
• Organization for Professional Astrology
• Jessica Pels, editor-in-chief, Cosmopolitan

     
Story produced by David Rothman. Editor: Carol Ross.