Alexander Woolcott was quite a character, and quite interesting on his own - look him up in the usual places. (The play "The Man Who Came to Dinner" was written about his life, and he originally starred in it.) I'm writing this post at the moment, though, as part of my reinvestigation of the charts and events in Bradley's Solar and Lunar Returns, and because more than one person on this forum is interested in medical astrological factors related to heart attack.
Woolcott was born January 19, 1887, 3:30 PM, in Phalanx, NJ (A-rated data). He suffered a heart attack while on a broadcast panel discussion in San FranciscoNew York City on April 23, 1940. A cerebral hemorrhage started in short order, and he was dead by the time he reached the hospital. I don't have a time, but it sounds like it was in the evening - I'll estimate 7 PM.
First the natal: He, like Winnie Ruth Judd, was a Capricorn-Scorpio, but a much more charming fellow - his Cap-Scorp side all went to humor and edgy wit. I don't see specific cardiac issues in the natal chart. They may have been acquired.
If there was one location on Earth that would bring Sun-related issues into focus, it would be San Francisco, where his Sun was on MC, Mars minutes from square Ascendant, and his Neptune rising. It, frankly, wasn't a healthy place for him to be.
Transits on the evening of his heart attack tell a different story than the natal: Pressures on his heart, weakness or frailty, enormous energy and strain, etc.
t Pluto op. r Sun +23'
-- t Mars sqq. r Sun -32'
t Neptune op. r MC +48'
t Uranus sq. r Mars -43'
t Saturn op. r Jupiter -53'
t Jupiter sqq. r Moon -40'
Bradley specifically admonished us to look at his local angles for this event, and it's easy to see why!
t Uranus conj. L Asc -53' [where it squared his Mars]
[Pluto opposite his Sun close to local meridian, but not partile]
Bradley didn't discuss Woolcott's Solunars - he was only an example of transits - so we'll check them on our own.
He was a Capricorn-Scorpio who died with luminaries in Aries-Scorpio.
His SSR for San Francisco is not particularly interesting. (Ditto the SQ.) I'll let you check it for yourself. He also had just had his Quarti-SSR (I've stopped being impressed with Quarti-Solars) and, at best, it showed more weakness, with Neptune setting.
But he was within a few hours of a new Lunar Return, which is a great example of my position that these take effect as much as a day before they occur. His SLR was do the following day at12:30 PM and has a partile (0°06') Sun-Saturn conjunction at Midheaven - a perfect mark of heart failure. - His prior SLR for March 28 was not so clearly expressive of the event, which may be why Bradley didn't use it as an example (n 1948 it hadn't yet been established that these are effective a little before they occur); but, even then, it showed strain with Pluto 24' from opposite his Sun near the horizon. His current Demi-SLR also added to the strain with Saturn exactly setting (34'), but was still protective, with a Sun-Jupiter partile conjunction (11'), until the new, incoming SLR was within range.
I don't think Woolcott died in San Francisco. I think he was in NYC. from Wikipedia
Woollcott was still not saying anything—at great length—when, on January 23, 1943, he appeared on his last radio broadcast,[18] as a participant in a Writers' War Board panel discussion on the CBS Radio program The People's Platform. Marking the tenth anniversary of Adolf Hitler's rise to power, the topic was "Is Germany Incurable?" Panelists included Woollcott, Hunter College president George Shuster, Brooklyn College president Henry Gideonse, and novelists Rex Stout and Marcia Davenport. The program's format began as a dinner party in the studio's private dining room, with the microphones in place. Table talk would lead into a live network radio broadcast, and each panelist would begin with a provocative response to the topic. "The German people are just as responsible for Hitler as the people of Chicago are for the Chicago Tribune," Woollcott stated emphatically, and the panelists noted Woollcott's physical distress.[19] Ten minutes into the broadcast, Woollcott commented that he was feeling ill, but continued his remarks. "It's a fallacy to think that Hitler was the cause of the world's present woes," he said. Woollcott continued, adding "Germany was the cause of Hitler."[20] He said nothing further. The radio audience was unaware that Woollcott had suffered a heart attack. He died at New York's Roosevelt Hospital a few hours later, aged 56,[21] of a cerebral hemorrhage.[22]
Bradley was unambiguous on page .87 of S&LR. (That doesn't mean he was right. It just means he was unambiguous.)
But you're right... Wikipedia is equally unambiguous that he died in NYC, specifically at Roosevelt Hospital. And I found half a dozen other citations saying he died in NYC (and they don't all seem to be quoting Wikipedia <g>).
So thanks... that really blows the "You guys have to check out transits to his locality chart!" plea in S&LR, but it is what it is. I'll to back and rework it for the right place.
Bradley didn't discuss Woolcott's Solunars - he was only an example of transits - so we'll check them on our own. - Notice that he had the wrong location for the event, so he wouldn't have see correct charts. (We'll correct that now.)
Woolcott was a Capricorn-Scorpio who died with luminaries in Aries-Scorpio.
His SSR for New York is on the right track, but imperfect. For example, Jupiter squares Ascendant about 1°. But Saturn is also on IC, widely, and the background Moon is square Mars.
But he'd just had his Quarti-SSR, and it's better than I'm used to seeing: Uranus is exactly on EP, and Mars and Venus are rising. Mars opposes natal Moon across horizon. Aside from perhaps inflammation, it's not all that bad, but it's kinda bad.
He was within a few hours of a new Lunar Return. It contributes nothing of interest. His prior (still technically current) SLR also has little to contribute, besides an unafflicted rising Sun.
