2 Zodiac Signs That Thrived In The 1970s
The 1970s were one of the most turbulent, colorful, depressing, and yet stylish decades in American history.
On the downside, the 70s marked the first time that the USA, which had grown over the years into being one of the most expansive superpowers ever, suffered humiliation on the world stage. After the Watergate scandal, Richard Nixon became the first American president ever to resign from office. The withdrawal from Vietnam marked the first time America can be said to have lost a war. The oil crisis saw gas prices rise to unprecedented levels, leading to what was known as “stagflation”—simultaneous double-digit inflation and unemployment—which has never been seen before or since. Rounding out the decade was the Iran hostage crisis, where a heretofore ignored nation held Americans captive and dared what had become the world’s “pitiless, helpless giant” to do something about it.
One the upside, the 1970s gave birth to disco, punk rock, and hip-hop—three musical genres that persist to this day. What was known as “women’s liberation” and is now known as feminism was in full swing. The sexual revolution was also in full gear, and the credo was, “If you can’t be with the one you love, love the one you’re with.” There were peace signs, tie-dyed shirts, bell-bottom pants, hip-hugger jeans, platform heels, shag haircuts, and massive Afros. People experimented with alternative spiritualities, illicit substances, and occultism at levels previously thought impossible.
The 70s were also the decade where astrology became mainstream. Every major newspaper carried at least one “daily horoscope” column. Even President Richard Nixon—the antithesis of “hip”—consulted with famed psychic and astrologer Jeane Dixon.
Here are two zodiac signs that were born to live in a topsy-turvy decade such as the 1970s.
1. Gemini
What sign could possibly be better suited to endure the ups and downs, the twists and turns of the 1970s better than the Twins? As a mutable modality, Gemini comes custom-made to go with the flow and roll with the changes. Ruled by Mercury, Geminis also tend to be mercurial, a word which means “subject to sudden or unpredictable changes of mood or mind.” Whether it was the onslaught of cults such as the Moonies, the Hare Krishnas, or the People’s Temple who committed mass suicide in Guyana…or the influx of weird drugs such as angel dust and Quaaludes, which seemed to appear and disappear in the 1970s…or the political turbulence of such extremist groups as the Symbionese Liberation Army and the Weather Underground…Gemini greeted it all with a shrug and a laugh.
Classic 70s Gemini Male: Barry Manilow (b. June 17, 1943), who rocketed to fame with hit singles such as “Mandy,” “I Write the Songs,” “Can’t Smile Without You,” “Could it Be Magic,” “Looks Like We Made It,” and the decade-closing disco song “Copacabana.”
Classic 70s Gemini Female: Stevie Nicks (b. May 26, 1948), who as the primary singer for rock group Fleetwood Mac released the 1977 album Rumors, which went on to sell over 40 million copies and had her band selling out giant stadiums with 90,000 seats.
2. Aquarius
The Broadway musical Hair spawned a 1969 single by the Fifth Dimension called “Age of Aquarius” that spent six weeks at #1 on the Billboard charts and unofficially ushered in the mainstreaming of the hippie era, which ruled American culture far more in the 1970s than it had in the 1960s. The song kicked off with the following lyrics:
When the moon is in the seventh house
And Jupiter aligns with Mars
Then peace will guide the planets
And love will steer the stars
This is the dawning of the Age of Aquarius
As noted, astrology also became a pop-culture fixture during the 1970s, and when people at a party asked, “Hey, baby, what’s your sign?” and you answered, “Aquarius,” you were considered the epitome of cool. After all, people thought they were in the Age of Aquarius during the 1970s. (Psst—don’t spoil anyone’s nostalgic memories, but some astrologers say the Age of Aquarius only happens once every 800 years, and the most recent dawning happened in 2021. Then again, they can’t seem to agree on when the Age of Aquarius starts or finishes, so let the hippies have their fun.)
Classic 70s Aquarius Male: John Travolta (b. February 18, 1954), who became a teen heartthrob as “Vinny Barbarino” in the sitcom Welcome Back, Kotter and danced his way into international superstardom in the 1977 movie Saturday Night Fever.
Classic 70s Aquarius Female: Farrah Fawcett (b. February 2, 1947), the blonde beauty with feathered hair who rocketed to fame during the first season of TV series Charlie’s Angels and posed in a red swimsuit for a 1976 poster that sold six million copies in its first year of release.