1 00:00:09,760 --> 00:00:15,000 Ben Bowlin: Warning. The following mini-sode includes discussion of brontosauruses, fortune telling, 2 00:00:15,320 --> 00:00:21,120 Ben Bowlin: Larry King, the Flintstones, and America's first licensed astrologer. It's 3 00:00:21,200 --> 00:00:25,800 Ben Bowlin: also conveniently packaged in a list format. For listeners who 4 00:00:25,920 --> 00:00:30,319 Ben Bowlin: don't like their information presented in numerical order, please take care. 5 00:00:41,720 --> 00:00:45,960 Mangesh Hattikudur: For anyone who listens, you know Skyline Drive isn't that political. 6 00:00:46,880 --> 00:00:50,280 Mangesh Hattikudur: But there are sometimes a person just has to stand up 7 00:00:50,360 --> 00:00:53,519 Mangesh Hattikudur: for what is right. And during the course of our reporting, 8 00:00:53,920 --> 00:00:57,320 Mangesh Hattikudur: it occurred to us here that there aren't any famous 9 00:00:57,360 --> 00:01:04,360 Mangesh Hattikudur: astrologers honored on US postage stamps. There are, however, brontosauruses... 10 00:01:04,920 --> 00:01:07,400 Mangesh Hattikudur: which were famously considered real when I was a kid, 11 00:01:07,520 --> 00:01:10,000 Mangesh Hattikudur: then were declared not real when my cousins were kids, 12 00:01:10,040 --> 00:01:13,720 Mangesh Hattikudur: and then maybe they're real again? I really can't keep track. 13 00:01:14,319 --> 00:01:17,280 Mangesh Hattikudur: Also, there are stamps with Confederate generals on them, which 14 00:01:17,319 --> 00:01:20,520 Mangesh Hattikudur: is confusing because why exactly are we honoring a bunch 15 00:01:20,520 --> 00:01:24,640 Mangesh Hattikudur: of people who tried to overthrow the government mostly because 16 00:01:24,640 --> 00:01:25,760 Mangesh Hattikudur: they wanted to keep slaves. 17 00:01:26,280 --> 00:01:29,959 Mangesh Hattikudur: But maybe most confusing of all, we have the Pony 18 00:01:30,080 --> 00:01:34,160 Mangesh Hattikudur: Express on stamps. This was a failed startup. It barely 19 00:01:34,280 --> 00:01:36,319 Mangesh Hattikudur: lasted a year and a half and it was never 20 00:01:36,480 --> 00:01:39,440 Mangesh Hattikudur: part of the US postal system. So it's kind of 21 00:01:39,440 --> 00:01:43,560 Mangesh Hattikudur: like Google issuing a Google Doodle to honor Alta Vista 22 00:01:43,880 --> 00:01:49,240 Mangesh Hattikudur: or Ask Jeeves or some other long dead competitor. So 23 00:01:50,040 --> 00:01:54,160 Mangesh Hattikudur: unless you think astrology is worse than fake dinosaurs, racist generals, 24 00:01:54,160 --> 00:01:58,040 Mangesh Hattikudur: and complete business failures, I think it's okay to put 25 00:01:58,040 --> 00:02:00,680 Mangesh Hattikudur: an astrologer on a stamp. And if we're gonna pick 26 00:02:00,760 --> 00:02:09,919 Mangesh Hattikudur: just one astrologer, I nominate Maxine Taylor. From Kaleidoscope and 27 00:02:10,040 --> 00:02:34,695 Mangesh Hattikudur: iHeart Podcasts, I'm Mangesh Hattikudur. Welcome to Skyline Drive. 28 00:02:34,695 --> 00:02:49,560 Mangesh Hattikudur: MINISODE ONE: 3 REASONS WE SHOULD PUT MAXINE TAYLOR ON A STAMP ALREADY 29 00:02:54,760 --> 00:02:57,600 Mangesh Hattikudur: To be honest, Maxine Taylor shouldn't have had time for me. 30 00:02:58,000 --> 00:03:02,160 Mangesh Hattikudur: She spends her days writing, collaborating on books, and taping 31 00:03:02,200 --> 00:03:05,400 Mangesh Hattikudur: predictions for her YouTube channel... and also filling the extra 32 00:03:05,440 --> 00:03:09,720 Mangesh Hattikudur: space in between with zoom consultations for clients. But I 33 00:03:09,760 --> 00:03:12,720 Mangesh Hattikudur: think what she heard I was from Brooklyn and visiting 34 00:03:12,760 --> 00:03:15,600 Mangesh Hattikudur: my parents in Georgia, she just couldn't resist. 35 00:03:16,240 --> 00:03:19,200 Mangesh Hattikudur: Maxine happens to be tethered to those two places too. 36 00:03:20,200 --> 00:03:22,880 Mangesh Hattikudur: She was born and raised in Brooklyn and has lived 37 00:03:22,919 --> 00:03:25,160 Mangesh Hattikudur: most of her adult life not too far from where 38 00:03:25,160 --> 00:03:28,359 Mangesh Hattikudur: my folks live. And I'm so glad she made time 39 00:03:28,360 --> 00:03:31,520 Mangesh Hattikudur: for me, because after just an hour with her, I 40 00:03:31,560 --> 00:03:34,519 Mangesh Hattikudur: realized how much she's done for the art and practice 41 00:03:34,600 --> 00:03:36,760 Mangesh Hattikudur: of astrology here in the United States. 42 00:03:40,960 --> 00:03:43,920 Mangesh Hattikudur: ONE: Maxine made it legal to be an astrologer. 43 00:03:51,840 --> 00:03:55,120 Maxine Taylor: I said, listen, I want to legalize astrology and at 44 00:03:55,160 --> 00:04:00,440 Maxine Taylor: some point become an astrologer. Back then, you practiced astrology 45 00:04:00,560 --> 00:04:05,400 Maxine Taylor: in hushed whispers, because we're in the Bible Belt, for 46 00:04:05,480 --> 00:04:06,080 Maxine Taylor: goodness sake. 47 00:04:06,960 --> 00:04:11,120 Mangesh Hattikudur: In 1969, soon after Maxine had moved from Brooklyn to Atlanta, 48 00:04:11,360 --> 00:04:13,920 Mangesh Hattikudur: she realized that you couldn't get a business license for 49 00:04:13,960 --> 00:04:15,160 Mangesh Hattikudur: astrology in Georgia. 50 00:04:15,800 --> 00:04:19,080 Maxine Taylor: It wasn't just Georgia, it was the entire country. 51 00:04:19,320 --> 00:04:22,039 Mangesh Hattikudur: One of the distinctions that seems to be made is 52 00:04:22,240 --> 00:04:26,640 Mangesh Hattikudur: between fortune telling and astrology, and so what is it 53 00:04:26,680 --> 00:04:29,080 Mangesh Hattikudur: that doesn't sit together with those two ideas. 54 00:04:30,279 --> 00:04:34,359 Maxine Taylor: Oh well, first of all, there's a negative connotation to 55 00:04:34,480 --> 00:04:38,279 Maxine Taylor: fortune telling. It's it's like a gypsy, it's like a 56 00:04:38,440 --> 00:04:42,320 Maxine Taylor: rip off, et cetera. It's not. I think it's a 57 00:04:42,520 --> 00:04:46,360 Maxine Taylor: term used to denigrate. But if you're able to put 58 00:04:46,480 --> 00:04:50,200 Maxine Taylor: people's mind at ease, put their hearts at ease, answer 59 00:04:50,279 --> 00:04:54,960 Maxine Taylor: their questions... and if you come from love, this is 60 00:04:55,120 --> 00:04:59,360 Maxine Taylor: a mission. It's a, it's a labor of love. And 61 00:04:59,440 --> 00:05:02,760 Maxine Taylor: I think that word "fortune telling" is insulting. 62 00:05:04,440 --> 00:05:06,520 Mangesh Hattikudur: Maxine had a vision that she was meant to bring 63 00:05:06,520 --> 00:05:09,520 Mangesh Hattikudur: astrology to the forefront. It came to her in a 64 00:05:09,640 --> 00:05:12,880 Mangesh Hattikudur: dream that one of her purposes here on earth was 65 00:05:12,920 --> 00:05:15,839 Mangesh Hattikudur: to make people see the worth and astrology and to 66 00:05:15,960 --> 00:05:19,240 Mangesh Hattikudur: legitimize it. So she took her case to the Cobb 67 00:05:19,279 --> 00:05:23,120 Mangesh Hattikudur: County Commissioners. The only problem was no one would give 68 00:05:23,120 --> 00:05:23,960 Mangesh Hattikudur: her an appointment. 69 00:05:24,360 --> 00:05:27,640 Mangesh Hattikudur: So for weeks she waited in the lobby without anyone 70 00:05:27,720 --> 00:05:30,640 Mangesh Hattikudur: calling her name, and finally she saw an open door. 71 00:05:30,720 --> 00:05:34,520 Mangesh Hattikudur: So she sneaks into the commissioner's office and politely asked 72 00:05:34,560 --> 00:05:37,960 Mangesh Hattikudur: him herself. And to her surprise, he invited her to 73 00:05:38,000 --> 00:05:40,600 Mangesh Hattikudur: a commission meeting the following week, just to plead her 74 00:05:40,640 --> 00:05:44,320 Mangesh Hattikudur: case in front of a panel. So Maxine, who's just 75 00:05:44,400 --> 00:05:47,560 Mangesh Hattikudur: in her twenties right now, is super nervous about this: 76 00:05:48,640 --> 00:05:53,360 Maxine Taylor: I was scared to death because it was very imposing. 77 00:05:53,680 --> 00:05:59,240 Maxine Taylor: The commissioners were sitting on a dais up high [laughing]... like judges! 78 00:06:00,080 --> 00:06:02,240 Maxine Taylor: And I didn't know how am I going to convince 79 00:06:02,360 --> 00:06:03,040 Maxine Taylor: these people. 80 00:06:04,160 --> 00:06:07,200 Mangesh Hattikudur: Also, the mood in the room is not great. The 81 00:06:07,240 --> 00:06:09,880 Mangesh Hattikudur: Marietta Daily Journal was there and they covered the event 82 00:06:10,160 --> 00:06:13,320 Mangesh Hattikudur: and they wrote, "it had been a long Tuesday afternoon 83 00:06:13,440 --> 00:06:18,200 Mangesh Hattikudur: full of sewer-angry and water-angry and highway-angry people, and the 84 00:06:18,240 --> 00:06:20,880 Mangesh Hattikudur: clock on the walls showed nearly five pm when the 85 00:06:20,920 --> 00:06:21,800 Mangesh Hattikudur: girl walked in." 86 00:06:23,040 --> 00:06:26,000 Mangesh Hattikudur: Anyway, she finally gets return and she starts by trying 87 00:06:26,000 --> 00:06:29,240 Mangesh Hattikudur: to show how astrology is prominent in the Bible. But 88 00:06:29,960 --> 00:06:32,560 Mangesh Hattikudur: she soon realizes that this tact isn't really working well. 89 00:06:32,680 --> 00:06:35,000 Mangesh Hattikudur: So she changes her strategy. 90 00:06:35,279 --> 00:06:39,719 Maxine Taylor: So what I did was I started talking about each sign, 91 00:06:40,360 --> 00:06:43,640 Maxine Taylor: and I asked each commissioner what their sign was. And 92 00:06:43,800 --> 00:06:49,239 Maxine Taylor: I described them and introduced humor. And the whole nine yards, 93 00:06:49,240 --> 00:06:50,159 Maxine Taylor: long story short. 94 00:06:51,080 --> 00:06:54,080 Mangesh Hattikudur: And Maxine's charm quickly wins them over. She explains how 95 00:06:54,080 --> 00:06:57,320 Mangesh Hattikudur: the charts take real work. Like it takes her nearly 96 00:06:57,360 --> 00:07:00,520 Mangesh Hattikudur: twelve hours of study before she presents one to a client. 97 00:07:01,120 --> 00:07:03,640 Mangesh Hattikudur: And she explains how she doesn't want to do this 98 00:07:03,680 --> 00:07:05,920 Mangesh Hattikudur: as a hobby out of her house. How she wants 99 00:07:05,920 --> 00:07:08,520 Mangesh Hattikudur: a proper office and a business license to go with it. 100 00:07:09,000 --> 00:07:12,240 Mangesh Hattikudur: And one of the commissioners get so intrigued that he 101 00:07:12,280 --> 00:07:14,520 Mangesh Hattikudur: asked her if she could predict the best days for 102 00:07:14,600 --> 00:07:18,320 Mangesh Hattikudur: going hog hunting. In the end, the panel was so 103 00:07:18,440 --> 00:07:21,040 Mangesh Hattikudur: tickled by the way she sussed out their personalities and 104 00:07:21,320 --> 00:07:24,480 Mangesh Hattikudur: connected the stars to their life stories that they decided 105 00:07:24,520 --> 00:07:27,600 Mangesh Hattikudur: to give her a license and they only charged her 106 00:07:27,600 --> 00:07:28,440 Mangesh Hattikudur: a hundred dollars. 107 00:07:28,960 --> 00:07:32,360 Maxine Taylor: I was able to buy the very first license, uh 108 00:07:32,640 --> 00:07:38,520 Maxine Taylor: for astrology, not entertainment, not miscellaneous, not fortune telling, and 109 00:07:38,600 --> 00:07:40,880 Maxine Taylor: so what I did was historical. 110 00:07:49,720 --> 00:07:53,160 Mangesh Hattikudur: TWO: Maxine put astrology on TV. 111 00:07:55,560 --> 00:07:57,880 Mangesh Hattikudur: Now. One of the things I strongly believe is that 112 00:07:57,920 --> 00:08:01,880 Mangesh Hattikudur: pop culture has the ability to sway all culture. So 113 00:08:02,000 --> 00:08:04,600 Mangesh Hattikudur: take how we sleep. For example, middle class couples in 114 00:08:04,640 --> 00:08:08,400 Mangesh Hattikudur: America used to sleep in separate twin beds, the way 115 00:08:08,480 --> 00:08:12,400 Mangesh Hattikudur: Lucy and Desi did, until sitcoms of all types from 116 00:08:12,800 --> 00:08:13,680 Mangesh Hattikudur: Ozzie and Harriet: 117 00:08:13,760 --> 00:08:14,720 clip: I thought you went to bed. 118 00:08:15,040 --> 00:08:15,920 clip: Well I did, but 119 00:08:16,160 --> 00:08:22,640 Mangesh Hattikudur: ... to the Flintstones ... to the Brady Bunch... started depicting 120 00:08:22,760 --> 00:08:27,400 Mangesh Hattikudur: couples sharing a bed, and this actually affected American bedrooms 121 00:08:27,400 --> 00:08:29,040 Mangesh Hattikudur: and buying habits. 122 00:08:29,040 --> 00:08:32,160 Mangesh Hattikudur: But that isn't the only case. Like when 16 and 123 00:08:32,240 --> 00:08:35,960 Mangesh Hattikudur: Pregnant aired on MTV, the teenage birth rate went down 124 00:08:36,000 --> 00:08:43,480 Mangesh Hattikudur: by 5.7%. Joe Biden claimed Will & Grace did more to pave 125 00:08:43,520 --> 00:08:46,200 Mangesh Hattikudur: the way to shift America's opinion on gay marriage than 126 00:08:46,360 --> 00:08:47,720 Mangesh Hattikudur: nearly anything else. 127 00:08:48,160 --> 00:08:51,439 Mangesh Hattikudur: So if any one thing could make astrology more acceptable 128 00:08:51,440 --> 00:08:55,679 Mangesh Hattikudur: to Americans, it's got to be an astrologer on CNN. 129 00:08:57,040 --> 00:08:59,280 Mangesh Hattikudur: Can you tell me how you ended up on the networks in the early years? 130 00:08:59,280 --> 00:09:04,640 Maxine Taylor: Um, CNN was an experiment, like the United States. It 131 00:09:04,720 --> 00:09:06,040 Maxine Taylor: was a grand experiment. 132 00:09:06,679 --> 00:09:09,439 Mangesh Hattikudur: At the time. CNN is just a startup and the 133 00:09:09,520 --> 00:09:11,600 Mangesh Hattikudur: channel is throwing ideas at the wall, trying to figure 134 00:09:11,640 --> 00:09:15,080 Mangesh Hattikudur: out what will stick. And the truth is, Maxine sticks. 135 00:09:15,800 --> 00:09:18,000 Mangesh Hattikudur: Maxine is kind of built for this. Not only she 136 00:09:18,240 --> 00:09:23,400 Mangesh Hattikudur: charming and fun and bubbly, but she's also beautiful and composed. 137 00:09:24,000 --> 00:09:27,320 Mangesh Hattikudur: In college, Maxine had been a regular in beauty pageants 138 00:09:27,440 --> 00:09:30,840 Mangesh Hattikudur: and a finalist from Miss University of Florida, And before 139 00:09:30,840 --> 00:09:33,280 Mangesh Hattikudur: she switched to doing astrology full time, she'd been an 140 00:09:33,320 --> 00:09:36,560 Mangesh Hattikudur: elementary school teacher. So she kind of knows how to 141 00:09:36,640 --> 00:09:38,640 Mangesh Hattikudur: wrangle outside personalities. 142 00:09:39,000 --> 00:09:41,360 Maxine Taylor: In fact, when I was on Larry King Show, he 143 00:09:41,480 --> 00:09:45,600 Maxine Taylor: was a gentleman and he was wonderful. But they felt 144 00:09:46,040 --> 00:09:51,920 Maxine Taylor: they had to present a disclaimer. When I was on, well, 145 00:09:53,320 --> 00:09:59,240 Maxine Taylor: I tend to rebel and you might have figured that 146 00:09:59,280 --> 00:10:06,360 Maxine Taylor: one out. UM and I really would get irritated with them. 147 00:10:06,400 --> 00:10:11,040 Maxine Taylor: And this was live TV, and I realized I love 148 00:10:11,520 --> 00:10:16,520 Maxine Taylor: live TV because whatever you say, you can't take back... 149 00:10:18,080 --> 00:10:21,080 Mangesh Hattikudur: And in the way Maxine always does, it wasn't long 150 00:10:21,120 --> 00:10:22,680 Mangesh Hattikudur: before she started winning people over. 151 00:10:23,720 --> 00:10:27,920 Maxine Taylor: What happened was my predictions were accurate [laughing], and so 152 00:10:28,720 --> 00:10:32,960 Maxine Taylor: they stopped criticizing. And a couple of them asked me 153 00:10:33,000 --> 00:10:34,600 Maxine Taylor: to do their charts. 154 00:10:35,679 --> 00:10:38,720 Mangesh Hattikudur: She won't reveal who, but big anchors on the network 155 00:10:38,760 --> 00:10:42,440 Mangesh Hattikudur: who would kind of mock astrology or who would publicly 156 00:10:42,520 --> 00:10:46,160 Mangesh Hattikudur: distance themselves from it were regularly asking her to do 157 00:10:46,240 --> 00:10:46,880 Mangesh Hattikudur: their charts. 158 00:10:47,640 --> 00:10:51,280 Maxine Taylor: I loved being on that team. Um and I did 159 00:10:51,320 --> 00:10:59,360 Maxine Taylor: political predictions. But at that time I was totally non-political. 160 00:11:00,120 --> 00:11:03,119 Maxine Taylor: I didn't even watch the news. It was too negative. 161 00:11:04,520 --> 00:11:07,679 Maxine Taylor: Maxine was such a joy that the station still brings 162 00:11:07,679 --> 00:11:10,840 Maxine Taylor: her back to comment on astrology scandals and occasionally to 163 00:11:10,880 --> 00:11:11,880 Maxine Taylor: make sense of the news. 164 00:11:12,440 --> 00:11:13,480 clip: What in the world's going on? 165 00:11:13,720 --> 00:11:18,800 Maxine Taylor: Oh honey. Every couple of years, some Yahoo rediscovers the 166 00:11:18,840 --> 00:11:22,600 Maxine Taylor: fact that there are two zodiacs. It's that simple, Really, yes, 167 00:11:22,760 --> 00:11:23,520 Maxine Taylor: it's that simple. 168 00:11:32,880 --> 00:11:36,960 Mangesh Hattikudur: THREE: She convinced an entire country that things would be okay. 169 00:11:38,920 --> 00:11:44,160 Maxine Taylor: I got a call in 1980-something, and it was from 170 00:11:44,160 --> 00:11:48,320 Maxine Taylor: a reporter who also worked for CNN. I couldn't understand 171 00:11:48,320 --> 00:11:51,880 Maxine Taylor: what he was saying, because then we had-- and I 172 00:11:51,880 --> 00:11:54,880 Maxine Taylor: don't know if we still do-- what was called coaxial cable. 173 00:11:55,240 --> 00:11:59,000 Maxine Taylor: It was undersea and there was an echo, it was like 174 00:11:59,080 --> 00:12:00,360 Maxine Taylor: talking into a tin can. 175 00:12:00,800 --> 00:12:05,320 Maxine Taylor: And he said, um, I would like you to do 176 00:12:05,880 --> 00:12:08,920 Maxine Taylor: the chart of Hungary. 177 00:12:09,679 --> 00:12:13,520 Mangesh Hattikudur: This is 1989, soon after communism fell in Poland and 178 00:12:13,600 --> 00:12:17,800 Mangesh Hattikudur: a pro-democracy revolution was spreading across Eastern Europe. And as 179 00:12:17,880 --> 00:12:21,880 Mangesh Hattikudur: protests were breaking out in Hungary, a CNN reporter based 180 00:12:21,880 --> 00:12:23,480 Mangesh Hattikudur: in Budapest reaches out. 181 00:12:24,360 --> 00:12:28,640 Maxine Taylor: And I laughed because I'm thinking: well, when was this 182 00:12:28,760 --> 00:12:32,040 Maxine Taylor: country born? So I said, well, if you can get 183 00:12:32,080 --> 00:12:35,600 Maxine Taylor: me their birth time, because you need an exact birth 184 00:12:35,640 --> 00:12:38,920 Maxine Taylor: time to cast a chart... and the month, day and year, 185 00:12:39,160 --> 00:12:42,559 Maxine Taylor: I'll do the chart. And he said okay. And I 186 00:12:43,200 --> 00:12:46,600 Maxine Taylor: said goodbye and kind of chuckled, thinking I'll never hear 187 00:12:46,600 --> 00:12:47,640 Maxine Taylor: from this guy again. 188 00:12:48,160 --> 00:12:53,959 Maxine Taylor: Well, a couple of weeks later he was back, and 189 00:12:54,280 --> 00:12:58,640 Maxine Taylor: he was so excited. He said, we were born today. 190 00:13:00,160 --> 00:13:04,920 Mangesh Hattikudur: On October 23, 1989, the Republic of Hungary officially came into being, 191 00:13:05,400 --> 00:13:09,200 Mangesh Hattikudur: ending communism there. The Berlin Wall would actually fall two 192 00:13:09,200 --> 00:13:13,064 Mangesh Hattikudur: weeks later. It was really an exciting period in history. 193 00:13:13,064 --> 00:13:17,640 Maxine Taylor: He gave me the moment it began and said, okay, 194 00:13:17,640 --> 00:13:20,600 Maxine Taylor: will you do the chart? And I did the chart 195 00:13:21,760 --> 00:13:27,240 Maxine Taylor: for the entire country. A country is an entity-- a living, 196 00:13:27,320 --> 00:13:33,079 Maxine Taylor: breathing entity. Um, and we interpret that chart a little 197 00:13:33,080 --> 00:13:37,480 Maxine Taylor: bit differently than we do a birth chart, because we're 198 00:13:37,520 --> 00:13:46,040 Maxine Taylor: dealing with not just say short trips, but transportation, communication, 199 00:13:46,760 --> 00:13:48,320 Maxine Taylor: the press, etcetera. 200 00:13:49,280 --> 00:13:52,640 Mangesh Hattikudur: Maxine's reading was pretty thorough. It addressed different areas of 201 00:13:52,640 --> 00:13:55,480 Mangesh Hattikudur: how Hungry would evolve, and it not only aired on 202 00:13:55,600 --> 00:13:59,520 Mangesh Hattikudur: Radio Budapest, but it was printed in newspapers across the country. 203 00:14:00,120 --> 00:14:03,679 Maxine Taylor: Obviously, there was a rebellion going on. People were fighting 204 00:14:03,720 --> 00:14:10,560 Maxine Taylor: for principles. Hungary wasn't free, and uh so it was 205 00:14:10,760 --> 00:14:12,600 Maxine Taylor: quite an event, quite an event. 206 00:14:14,320 --> 00:14:18,040 Maxine Taylor: I considered that the highest honor, and that was what 207 00:14:18,120 --> 00:14:23,760 Maxine Taylor: I realized I wanted to do. To hug the world. 208 00:14:43,760 --> 00:14:47,040 Mangesh Hattikudur: Maxine Taylor broke all sorts of areas for astrologers in 209 00:14:47,080 --> 00:14:51,040 Mangesh Hattikudur: the US. She created space in this world for professional astrology. 210 00:14:51,440 --> 00:14:54,120 Mangesh Hattikudur: She brought it into the news cycle, and she put 211 00:14:54,200 --> 00:14:57,640 Mangesh Hattikudur: the citizens of Budapest at ease by getting the entire 212 00:14:57,800 --> 00:15:01,600 Mangesh Hattikudur: country a reading. Also, she's a total sweetheart. 213 00:15:02,840 --> 00:15:09,240 Maxine Taylor: I love humanity and I love the diversity. People who 214 00:15:09,280 --> 00:15:14,040 Maxine Taylor: are so bigoted-- it's like, can't you see we are 215 00:15:14,120 --> 00:15:20,160 Maxine Taylor: all one? We come in different colored packages, different shapes, 216 00:15:20,360 --> 00:15:26,080 Maxine Taylor: different sizes, different beliefs, and when you touch base with 217 00:15:26,320 --> 00:15:31,920 Maxine Taylor: somebody on that level, to me, that's heaven. 218 00:15:35,400 --> 00:15:37,760 Mangesh Hattikudur: I love how astrology provides a way for us to 219 00:15:37,800 --> 00:15:41,280 Mangesh Hattikudur: connect and how it lets us see people not just 220 00:15:41,400 --> 00:15:45,200 Mangesh Hattikudur: in their Instagram perfect lives, but to appreciate them for 221 00:15:45,320 --> 00:15:50,120 Mangesh Hattikudur: all their complexity. In 2023, we're getting new postage stamps 222 00:15:50,160 --> 00:15:55,560 Mangesh Hattikudur: to honor snow globes, sailboats, school buses, and pinatas. And 223 00:15:55,720 --> 00:15:59,720 Mangesh Hattikudur: while I'm very much for those things, astrology figures into 224 00:15:59,760 --> 00:16:02,760 Mangesh Hattikudur: a out of our daily lives. From the Reagan episode, 225 00:16:02,800 --> 00:16:05,920 Mangesh Hattikudur: we know it's shaped our world and country. And in 226 00:16:05,960 --> 00:16:08,840 Mangesh Hattikudur: a strange way, it gives a lot of us comfort 227 00:16:09,280 --> 00:16:13,320 Mangesh Hattikudur: and purpose. Stamps are a symbol of what we value 228 00:16:13,600 --> 00:16:17,440 Mangesh Hattikudur: and what we want to celebrate. So don't you think 229 00:16:17,560 --> 00:16:21,480 Mangesh Hattikudur: between all those sailboats and the snow globes and the pinatas, 230 00:16:22,520 --> 00:16:24,680 Mangesh Hattikudur: there might be a little room for an astrologer, too? 231 00:16:26,480 --> 00:16:27,200 Mangesh Hattikudur: I like to think. 232 00:16:27,200 --> 00:16:49,040 Mangesh Hattikudur: So that's it for this week's Minisode of Skyline Drive. 233 00:16:49,320 --> 00:16:52,520 Mangesh Hattikudur: Special Thanks to my team here, Mary, Mitra, Mark, Anna 234 00:16:52,680 --> 00:16:55,920 Mangesh Hattikudur: and Dhruv for cobbling this together over the holidays. And 235 00:16:56,000 --> 00:17:00,360 Mangesh Hattikudur: Botany as always for the soundtrack. Also thank you so 236 00:17:00,520 --> 00:17:03,520 Mangesh Hattikudur: much to the lovely Maxine Taylor. To see her predictions 237 00:17:03,520 --> 00:17:06,960 Mangesh Hattikudur: for America or to book a consult with America's first 238 00:17:07,040 --> 00:17:12,720 Mangesh Hattikudur: license astrologer, just visit MaxineTaylor.com. Also a big thank you 239 00:17:12,760 --> 00:17:15,680 Mangesh Hattikudur: to my good pal Ben Bowlin for doing this episode's warning. 240 00:17:15,920 --> 00:17:18,080 Mangesh Hattikudur: Ben used to sit across from me at How Stuff Works. 241 00:17:18,080 --> 00:17:20,960 Mangesh Hattikudur: He's the co host of Ridiculous History and Stuff they 242 00:17:20,960 --> 00:17:23,720 Mangesh Hattikudur: Don't Want You To Know, two excellent programs, and he 243 00:17:23,960 --> 00:17:26,880 Mangesh Hattikudur: just put out a phenomenal new book by the same name, 244 00:17:27,240 --> 00:17:30,200 Mangesh Hattikudur: Stuff they Don't Want You to Know. Go pick one 245 00:17:30,359 --> 00:17:31,200 Mangesh Hattikudur: up immediately. 246 00:17:32,000 --> 00:17:34,960 Mangesh Hattikudur: We'll be back with more full episodes very very soon. 247 00:17:35,480 --> 00:17:37,680 Mangesh Hattikudur: I know you have so many shows to choose from, 248 00:17:37,720 --> 00:17:39,920 Mangesh Hattikudur: but I want to thank you from the bottom of 249 00:17:39,920 --> 00:17:44,160 Mangesh Hattikudur: my heart for spending your time with us. See you soon.