Even a nonbeliever knows his astrological sign. If his birthday falls, for example, between May 22 and June 21, the charts have always told him that he is a Gemini. They reassure him that deep down he is a restless, versatile, clever, exuberant and expressive chap, even if friends and neighbors find him stolid, sullen and introverted. Sudden notification that this same fellow is in reality a Taurusstubborn, systematic, kindhearted and musicalis sure to prove unsettling, particularly when he appears decidedly sloppy, mean and congenitally tone-deaf.
Worse still would be the news that he had been reclassified a Cetus, a sun sign that points to no personality traits whatever and cannot be found, embossed or appliquéd, on a single charm bracelet, watch fob, dish towel or shower curtain. Nonetheless, such a possibility now exists. So says Steven Schmidt, whose book, Astrology 14 (Bobbs-Merrill; $4.95), not only shifts the old signs to different dates but also adds two more constellations to the Zodiac.
Perfectly Taurus. Schmidt's theory turns upon the fact that in the 2,000 years since the old astrological rules were set up, there has been a slight change in the tilt of the earth's axis. This has caused an apparent shift in the positions of the constellations. In addition, he notes that astrologers have refused to recognize that there are actually 14 constellations in the Zodiac belt, not 12.
An even dozen, of course, is convenient for reckoning points of the compass or months of the year. Fourteen is a bother. Hence the two additional constellations, Cetus (the whale) and Ophiuchus (the serpent slayer), have been ignored. Not by Schmidt, who assigns each constellation 26 days instead of 30, making room for Cetus between Aries and Taurus, and for Ophiuchus between Sagittarius and Scorpio. Let the horoscopes fall where they may; his way, Schmidt argues, gives "a better guide to analyzing character."
To Schmidt, who was born on July 7 and was obviously dissatisfied at being designated a Cancer (sign of the tenacious, motherly and easily influenced), the change is eminently logical. The new line-up makes him a Gemini, "as might be expected, perhaps, of one who writes fiction and poetry by choice and edits scientific reports for a living." Other personalities, selected "at random" for proof that they are just as at home in the traditional horoscope, include such ''hardly wishy-washy" Ariens as Warren Beatty, Debbie Reynolds and Schmidt's brother, Jack (obviously better off as "strongwilled, ambitious" Pisceans). Robert Schumann, Prince Philip and Schmidt's son, Sherwood, oldtime Geminis, are now perfectly Taurus.