_{Joanne Woodward and Paul Newman as Clara Varner and Ben Quick in the film ‘The Long Hot Summer’. It was based on a novel by William Faulkner and directed by Martin Ritt, circa 1958. The couple remained together until Newman’s death in 2008. (Getty Images)}

I promised you an example of a synastry analysis that is slightly more positive than the Sophie Turner and Joe Jonas debacle, and thank God that HBO saved my a$%! Because I have to say that finding positive examples in the world of celebrity marriages and relationships is a difficult task and mostly because the good ones are not so easily mediatized. People who love well and stay together usually lead relatively quiet lives, fairly removed from scandal & drama (see for example Christian Bale and Sibi Blazic, or George & Amal Clooney). In my romantic search, I found out that in 2022, HBO released a documentary created by an enthusiastic Ethan Hawke, about the intimate life of Joanne Woodward and Paul Newman. I don’t know why it took me this long to realize that it was available to watch, but I feel like the waiting has a fated quality to it, since I am writing about it now, after the Autumn Equinox of 2023 and during Libra season, the zodiac sign of partnerships.

The 6-parts documentary is emotional and informative and just gorgeous to watch, as you get behind-the-scenes audio interpretations by a slew of famous actors, most of whom appear to be Ethan’s chums; to say that I couldn’t take my eyes off the screen was an understatement, it was such an interesting and emotional ride, and a really welcomed surprise. Called The Last Movie Stars, the documentary revealed some interesting aspects about their 50-years long marriage (the pair got married in 1958!). I mean, even if I were to start a relationship this year, I don’t think I would still have 50 years left to give it my all to love; but I can dream about that possibility, and that’s the beauty of this intimate piece of work: it renews romantic hope. The fascinating part was the relationship that Paul and Joanne had, which by itself and considering its length, becomes almost an institutional entity. So let’s explore their astrological markers and see if there are any clues that may point toward relational durability and love stamina.

Below is Joanne’s chart, which tells us that she is a Sun in Pisces in the 2nd house (conjunct Venus), a Moon in Aquarius in the 2nd house (conjunct Mars, Mercury & Lilith in the 1st house), and an Ascendant in Capricorn (conjunct the Part of Fortune in the 1st house & Saturn in the 12th house). The big threes in someone natal chart (the Sun, Moon and Ascendant) point towards someone’s identity, their public and private Self but in a synastry analysis, we have to look at a person’s relationship markers to sus out the glue that binds two people together. As relationship markers, Joanne has them deeply combined with her personal identity placements, seeing as her Moon is tied up with her Mars & Mercury (making her a passionate and naturally clever woman), and her Sun is hugged by her Venus (some astrologers call the Sun’s nearness to any planet, a combust aspect, something which drains the planet of its energy; however, Joanne is undeniably beautiful so we will ignore that interpretation – in general, I don’t see the point of naming aspects ‘combust’).

_{Photo and birth-chart of actress Joanne Woodward taken from https://www.astro-seek.com/birth-chart/joanne-woodward-horoscope}

In addition, Joanne brings a powerful aspect to the table in terms love and marriage and that is her Pluto retrograde in Cancer in the 7th house conjunct the Descendant. Pluto here can make one highly sexed up, intimidating, mysterious and irresistibly attractive in love; they may also use manipulation, subterfuge and guilt-tripping to control their loved ones, especially since hers is placed in the sign of Cancer (a Water sign) which rules over emotional mood swings. And guess what, Paul has this exact placement too! The reason being is they share an Ascendant. This mutual Pluto aspect can also manifest as a secret love affair. Indeed their love story began when Paul was still married to his ex-wife, Jackie Witte. Paul left Jackie for Joanne, as the latter was too astrologically irresistible. Another reason was, that they had a hefty past-life karma to process together, since Paul’s Saturn in Scorpio was conjunct Joanne’s South Node in Scorpio, and Joanne’s Moon, Mars and Mercury were conjunct Paul’s South Node.

Speaking of Paul’s chart, you can see below that he has a Sun in Aquarius in the 1st house (conjunct his South Node), a Moon in Pisces in the 2nd house (conjunct Uranus) and the same Capricorn Ascendant as Joanne – the difference is that his Asc is conjunct the planet of luck and growth, Jupiter! Not only that but Venus and Mercury are neatly tucked into the Ascendant’s radius, which is wow! It’s like God, on the day of Creation decided to spend some time on Paul, packing in his lunch box some diamonds too. Having Jupiter, Venus and Mercury on the Ascendant obliterates the rather stern and difficult energy that Capricorn brings to anyone’s chances in life. At the same time it adds layers upon layers of fears and responsibilities to someone’s life. In the series he describes how he used drinking as a way to take the edge off things, so that they won’t feel so difficult. Practical responsibilities burdened him more than any other man, since Paul was born with a sensitive Moon in Pisces conjunct Uranus in the 2nd house. Uranus disrupted and fragmented his inner world and gave him some wild emotional ups and downs, but due to his Capricorn Ascendant he kept it all in, repressing the expressionist madness of his inner life; the positive side is that this energy was then sublimated in his movie roles, and transformed into art.

_{Photo and birth-chart of actor Paul Newman taken from https://www.astro-seek.com/birth-chart/paul-newman-horoscope}

Notice here another interesting pattern between their charts? Paul’s Moon falls on Joanne’s Sun and Venus (which is usually an indication of soul-mate marriage), while his Uranus also conjuncts her Sun and Venus (a sign of relational disruption). This means that as much as there was emotional sweetness between the two of them (Sun conjunct Moon) and true love (Sun conjunct Venus), there were also shocks, sudden separations, electricity and awkwardness (Sun conjunct Uranus). They also had an emotional double whammy which guarantees a deep soulmate bond: both of their Sun and Moons were intertwined! So despite the fact that he is an Air sign and she is a Water sign and some classic astrologers might consider them incompatible, her Sun in Pisces fell on his Moon in Pisces, while his Sun in Aquarius fell on her Moon – this kind of synastry gives me goosebumps, since it shows two people who think and feel in similar ways. And indeed in their political views and humanitarian efforts, they were united. On a deeper level it shows two similar souls, made for marriage and embodied to support each other in this lifetime.

Let’s return to their shared Ascendant, since their shared Capricorn energy is the most visible sign of two people who came together to build something durable. Capricorn energy doesn’t play around: it is pragmatic, it looks for something safe, it makes strategic moves to gain something tangible, enduring and reliable; and this is how their relationship seemed to the public, from the outside looking in. The Ascendant represents the opportunities people tend to attract towards themselves, so for Paul it was his destiny to attract fame and fortune (Jupiter), to have many women in his life (Venus) and to develop an image of stoic communication (Mercury). Indeed, in The Last Movie Stars, the most fascinating aspect was how Paul’s career took off in his twenties, around the time he married here, while Joanne’s stagnated as she took on the role of primary caregiver for their children, right after she won an Oscar.

In spite of this power-shift, many actors and directors continued to believe that Joanne was the most talented in the craft of acting from the two of them, if we take into account that she won her Oscar in 1958, while Paul received his as an honorary award in 1986 (for Joanne, Saturn gave her limitations but it also gave her professional respect and enduring skills). This Jupiter in Capricorn versus Saturn in Capricorn energies that they shared are demonstrated in the directions that their lives took. But there is more to this weird shift in power which they experienced in their careers, and this aspect is shown by the placement of their lunar nodal points. Let me bring up their synastry chart so you can have a look at their points and aspects in detail:

_{The synastry chart of Paul and Joanne’s relationship taken from https://famouspeople.astro-seek.com/marriage/paul-newman/joanne-woodward}

Jesus Christ! When I first saw the chart I couldn’t help myself: it looks like a literal battle ground, due to the prevalence of the many red aspects (or points of tension, the squares and the oppositions). But as many red aspects as they have, these are balanced out by the blue ones (or harmonious and friendly energies, the trines and the sextiles). Astro-seek.com is letting me know that the two actors have 7 loving aspects, 9 key aspects, 11 passion aspects and 5 pain aspects between them. Conspicuously, there seems to be no conflict aspect between them… well, this is why getting a synastry analysis from a human being rather than a computer, can be a more satisfying endeavor. The odd description of ’11 passion aspects’ can be better summed up by the fact that Joanne and Paul had a natural, wild chemistry between them as her Mars was conjunct his Sun and this is a classic signifier of being physically turned on by someone while also frequently arguing with them.

In addition, Paul’s Mars in Aries was conjunct Joanne’s Uranus in Aries, another indicator of feeling aroused and electrified by someone’s unique individuality (and with a Mars in Aries it is also not surprising to me that he enjoyed car racing so much). Not only that but their physical passion was supported by emotional aspects with long-term holding potential and stoic durability. Paul’s Saturn in Scorpio in the 10th house was trine (or in harmony) to Joanne’s Sun and Venus in Pisces, showing again how he helped her express her femininity and create a safe haven at home, not with his physical presence in the home but by playing his role as the family provider (the 10th house shows the public arena and the role of the experienced mentor, and any planets here carry a lot of weight, like Atlas holding the world).

Coming into his strength and shinning brightly in the public’s eye was Paul’s uncomfortable growth zone and destiny, as his North Node was in charismatic Leo. While for Joanne, letting go of her sexual power and her artistry was necessary, so that she could focus more on domestics bliss and creating a simple and cozy sense of stability in her life, since her North Node was in stable Taurus. They were interviewed once if they had things in common and aside from the world of acting and their family life, they felt divided in their hobbies and goals. Again, this divide is a manifestation of the placement of their nodal points which were at odds with each other: Scorpio vs. Aquarius South Nodes, and Taurus vs. Leo North Nodes. Nonetheless having nodal points in such fixed signs, contributed to their durability as a couple.

In addition, Paul’s Moon in Pisces was naturally supported by Joanne’s Saturn in Capricorn. In the documentary there is a good portion dedicated to Paul’s alcoholism and there is a memory described in which Joanne was fed up with Paul’s self-destructive drinking and she took the kids and drove them to a house in Malibu. She refused to come out of it, unless Paul quit drinking. It’s almost impossible to convince someone with that much Saturn and Neptune energy in his chart (plus a Saturn in Scorpio) to drop drinking or other habits which help them cope with the sheer heaviness and gravity of being alive. But as he solar light in Pisces (The Sun) influenced Paul’s darker moods (the Moon), Joanne had this inner fortitude which helped him at least improve a toxic habit. She apparently reached a compromise with him so that in the end, he gave up hard liquor and kept drinking only beer. As a Pisces Sun myself and growing up with an alcoholic father who has a Moon in Capricorn, I think I have a certain understanding as to how difficult that must’ve been for her, but nonetheless they reached a solution. Despite their shared interest in acting, their intense physical chemistry and their deep soulmate compatibility, their relationship was far from perfect and it seems like they grew into loving one another after marriage rather than at the time they got married. Joanne describes in the documentary: ‘I don’t think I was in love with him when we met. I was in lust, but no. Love came later’.

And that is the beauty of their relationship and their synastry: it shows two people who saved their love-ship by committing to each other time and time again, even after the power shift in their careers, even after the suicide of his son, even after the secret liaisons with other people, Paul came home to Joanne and Joanne came home to Paul, and when they did they gave each other room to breathe and to grow rather than basking in resentments and fighting. And they did this for 50 years, building their love and commitment brick by brick, after every challenge. In present days, where most people meet online and we block and stonewall those who have different opinions then we do, when we are distracted by all the many sexual options that the social world has to offer, and when we tend to commit more to our jobs rather than our relationships, their love story is truly inspiring and serves as a sober role-model to admire and follow.

There is of course more to say about their synastry, but I shall stop here because this post will become too long. One final interesting tidbit I wanted to add was that the creator of the documentary, Ethan Hawke, also had some fascinating synastry with them. Ethan is a Sun in Scorpio (conjunct a stellium) and a Moon in Aquarius (conjunct his North Node). Sadly, we don’t know his Ascendant, but I bet it might be Capricorn 🙂 If you clicked on Ethan’s highlighted name to see his chart, you may have noticed Ethan’s Scorpio stellium, which was activated in relation to the couple in order to preserve the intimate legacy of Paul (aspects to his Saturn in Scorpio & Sun in Aquarius) and honor the emotional craftsmanship of Joanne as an actress (aspects to her Moon, Mercury and Mars in Aquarius; beautiful trine to her Sun and Venus in Pisces). Bearing this in mind, my intuition is telling me that Ethan was so enthralled with their story because it also helped him heal himself, by unifying the split masculine and feminine energy within himself, as he has this powerful Sun-Moon conjunction aspect to both Paul and Joanne. Outside of a marriage, the Sun and the Moon can also represent the Mother and the Father collective archetypes, and from my public knowledge of his early life and upbringing, Ethan grew up without a father and with a strong, single mother, Leslie (who happens to love visiting Romania). But I guess we can look into Ethan’s chart some other time. For the time being, I hope this analysis inspired you. If you enjoyed this analysis and would like to get in touch with me for your own, personalized synastry report, please see here.

With cosmic love,

Lexi