BIRTH CHARTS OF MEDIUMS Like Char Margolis, James van Praagh, Robert van den Broeke and Jomanda

CHAR MARGOLIS lives in Los Angeles but is most famous in The Netherlands, where she is often on television as a medium. The past few months transit Saturn crossed over her natal Sun and that does not give a person much credit. So a few days ago the Dutch television program Zembla claimed to have uncovered how Char works, that mistakes should be cut out of the program and that she is able to and does ask 600 dollar per hour for a consultation. The makers of the program said in a magazine that there are trainers to teach you how to be like Char. One of those trainers said that he does not need a mobile phone to know who needs him...hmm...does not that sound just as incredible as talking with the death?
The fact that the program claimed things about Char but instead showed other failing mediums and the sceptic mr. James Randi (who offers 1 million dollar to the person who is able to show his psychic abilities) was perhaps in her favour. Transit Neptune, planet of the amorph, invisible and immaterial made a trine with her progressed Sun.

BIRTH CHART
Sorry, I have not been able to find any birth time for Char Margolis. She was born August 21, 1951 and because she lives in LA I used that place for her place of birth with Zodiac houses (see the chart). (Later someone informed me that in a TV-program Char has said that she is a double Leo. That would make her Pluto even more prominent and/or place Vulcanus on top). In her chart Pluto is rising before the Sun. That is an indication for the power of money, sex, influence, politics or...matters of life and death. Notice the placement of the responsible manager Saturn opposition Zero Aries/Aries Point. This combination of Saturn and Pluto is what I call the 'die hard construction'. It is also there in the birth chart of a Dutch medium, Jomanda (born May 5, 1948 at about 13 hours). In her chart Saturn is sesquisquare Zero Aries. Saturn and Pluto are both square her Sun.

DISCOVERY
Back to Char. Char says that she was eight years old when she noticed her spiritual talents. That is the same age James van Praagh mentions (see below). In the chart of Chart this period is highlighted. Progressed Uranus was semi square her natal Sun: this is a sort of an 'awakening'. And Solar Arc Pluto was conjunct her Sun. Uranus and Pluto together transform your world.
She became famous in 1999 with progressed Sun opposition Jupiter, the planet of expansion and successes.

MIDPOINTS
Relevant midpointcombinations are plenty. Sun square Jupiter/Uranus and 22.5 degrees from Neptune/Pluto for foresight and spirituality. Both Venus and Mars are connected to Jupiter/Pluto and Neptune/Pluto (succesful passion related to spiritual growth or succesful (Jupiter/Pluto) working with (Mars) high sensitive (Neptune/Pluto) talents (Venus). Jupiter is connected to Sun/Uranus (112.5d) and Sun/Neptune (157.5d) for having a believing audience and being an idol. Uranus with Sun/Jupiter (22.5d) and Neptune/Pluto (67.5) promisses unexpected fortune in the spiritual field.

SELLING IT TRUSTWORTHY
Hard aspects with Aries Point come from Mercury/Jupiter, Venus/Jupiter, Venus/Uranus, Sun/ Mars and Mercury/Neptune. You can see the succesfull medium stepping forward in this combination. In my book Astro Trio I describe this combination of Mercury with Jupiter and Neptune like this: 'Knowing how to sell things so that it is being trusted'. The tightest aspect in her chart is Mercury inconjunct Jupiter. That aspect points at being clever, knowing how to learn languages and how to communicate, but also at a disbalance between words and convincing, sometimes due to exagerated statements.

RELEVANT:
Saturn and Pluto
Uranus and Pluto

JAMES RANDI
James Randi was one of the 'specialists' to prove that Char was a Char-latan. Randi was born August 7 1928, a former illusionist. He has Pluto oriental (just like Char) and Mars is tightly square Neptune (working with or against the immaterial, amorph etc.). His Sun sesquisquare Zero Aries is for drawing attention.

JAMES VAN PRAAGH AND ROBERT VAN DEN BROEKE
On May 21 2006 I wrote this on Astrodatabank about the American medium James van Praagh:

"2 Hello all,
James van Praagh is a school example for astrologers, I think. This must be the right HOB, as there are so many indications in this fascinating chart for what he does and for the events leading to this vocation.

You need only see the ascendant. The ascendant = Aries Point and trines Pluto. The ascendant=AP is connecting a range of succes indicating midpoints: Sun/Jupiter, Sun/Neptune, Mercury/Jupiter, Mercury/Neptune, Jupiter/Pluto, Pluto/Nodes, Venus/Mars and Mars/Uranus. (Sun, Mercury, Jupiter, Pluto, Nodes for succes and Sun, Jupiter, Mercury, Neptune for the imaginative side of the job).

I never saw this man or read his books. But I think his 'show' is based upon true experiences of this man in the past. Of course he might add some of the observations he makes. I know it is possible to find out a persons secret info just be looking at the face while asking questions. (Some mediums go way too far and start cheating to impress the audience and to answer to their demands, as you will read further below.) Back to astrology...

When James van Praagh was 8 and, according to the data, had his first experiences with spirits, the progressed MC was conjunct Neptune and sextile Pluto (a classical indication for the paranormal). In 1992 his Sun was conjunct Jupiter/Pluto (for succes) and semi sextile both Neptune and Pluto. As if it was time for the paranormal.

The MC with Jupiter, Nodes and Neptune indicate many fans and followers. These combinations with Jupiter and Neptune refer to his period at the seminary, too.I find Jupiter/Neptune combinations in the charts of popes, monks and actors (and with Venus in the charts of those marrying a rich and famous partner, BTW:).

It takes IMAGINATION to believe and it also takes imagination to be acting.And a supportive and believing audience. The whole chart shows that he is a creative man with a hugh fantasy and empathy who is able to impress and influence his audience. I think it is interesting to see that you cannot tell from a chart if a person is a fraud. Only if he will be seen as a fraud or not. Or else all of the popes I studied would be frauds as well. So maybe Jupiter/Neptune refers to the progress in life people make based upon the invisible and untouchable things in life or using their imagination. Even television is Neptunic.

As Neptune is interpreted negatively mostly fraude, cheating and secretive actions are mentioned so much. But the other side is empathy and all things that are not visible and touchable at the same time (like a screen showing the movie or television program, like God for example, like spirits). Neptune is an important instrument for arts and idealists (visions of how it could be).I think a Capricorn ascendant is the right instrument for observing. Pluto in aspect with the ascendant (James has a narrow trine) fascinates and impresses.

I add a few of the interpretations for midpoints given by Ebertin and indicating the visionairy mind of Van Praagh, without mentioning the sort of aspect:
MARS=NEPTUNE/PLUTO (BEING USED AS an instrument or as A MEDIUM)
Sun=Moon/Neptune (sensitive)
Moon=Mars/Neptune (cheating, being receptive)
Mercury=Moon/Neptune (visions, fantasy, artistic talents)
Mercury=Neptune/Ascendant=Jupiter/Ascendant=Sun (being mislead or misleading and at the same time being inspired or inspiring)
Venus=Uranus/Neptune (high sensitivity)
Jupiter=Neptune/Node (being used or using others)
Jupiter=Neptune/MC (hopefull dreaming, speculating)
Pluto=Neptune/Ascendant (disadvantages because of the influence or gossip of others)
Asc=Mercury/Neptune (being influenced, used etc)

And I count more than 10 succes indicating midpoints.

BTW
Recently Robbert van den Broeke (7th May 1980 Breda, Holland, no HOB), a television medium in my country, ended his carreer on tele when an organisation of sceptic minds found out he used the internet to gather information about so called ancestors of his client. This man went to
far. Or he connects to Google in his mind:) He has Jupiter on Mercury/Neptune and (sorry for him:) Neptune on Pluto/Nodes ( Ebertin's interpretation of this midpoint combination is rather harsh).

The story is too long for this forum, but rather amusing (and only visible after extension, so real Neptunic..:). He told a client that her ancestors'profession was 'geneburner'(genverbrander in Dutch) as he overlooked a typing error on the internet (it should have been 'ginburner'- geneverbrander in Old Dutch). The strange word 'geneburner' made people check it and so they found it was not a spirit but another mental source of info that he used."

I added another message today. I found that Van Praagh made a mistake later. In 2003 he had told the parents of the lost boy Shawn that the boy was murdered. But in January 2007 the boy came back alive. At that moment Van Praagh had the progressed Ascendant square the progressed Saturn: Saturn is the symbol of a step back, a mistake, failure etc. If you want to study his chart, here are his data: 23081956 161800 EDT
New York.