'Mucho Mucho Amor': Why did world-famous astrologer Walter Mercado disappear from TV at the peak of his career?
Walter Mercado took the '70s and the '80s by a storm with his dramatic reading of astrological charts. Never had an androgynous astrologer won people's hearts on television by creating a larger-than-life presence that was also instantly identifiable. From his flashy capes and blonde hair to his charismatic reading of the daily horoscope, people all across the world fell in love with him. Then one day, without any prior warning, Mercado vanished from the public eye, never to be seen again.
Netflix's 'Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend Of Walter Mercado,' which premieres on July 8, unveils the true reason Mercado was forced to disappear from show business. "Growing up with Walter Mercado, I just remember how dramatic he was and how fabulous he was," actor and playwright Lin-Manuel Miranda says in the documentary. "I can't think of an English language astrologer that would command the attention of billions of households. It was just Walter... he made me believe through the force of his oratory. I just think he is this positive force. He's literally sending positive vibes through the television at you one astrological sign at a time. And then he signing off on 'Mucho, Mucho Amor' (much, much love in English). But all of a sudden he disappeared."
There were many speculations following his disappearance. While some thought he was living in Mexico in secrecy, others thought that he did not want to grow old in front of the cameras. Some of Mercado's fans also thought he had sought voluntary retirement since he was old and probably suffering from unknown health problems. They believed that he lived in a fortress-like home in Puerto-Rico, where he originally was from and no one could enter his house. One of the more bizarre theories behind his disappearance was that he was an extraterrestrial being who had gone back to his own planet. However, the reality, as shown in the documentary is far from any of the theories popularized by Mercado's fans.
It all started with Mercado's former manager, Bill Bakula, who came across the former's old show and reached out to him with the proposal of making him the star of the first-ever show on television which was wholly dedicated to astrology. The show became an instant hit. "In that moment people were very hungry to listen to some word of inspiration. Maybe it was the right moment, on the right occasion with the right people. Everything was right. According to the stars, it was perfect," says Mercado in the documentary.
Bakula says, "Every talent needs somebody behind them. I was the coach for one single purpose: Walter's message to get out to as many people as possible." At one point, Mercado was doing television and radio shows. Though his daily horoscope readings, Mercado's fame spread from Latin America to Italy, Holland, the United Kingdom, and last but not the least, the United States. Mercado also landed a book deal with Time Warner called 'Beyond The Horizon." Soon Mercado began conducting private readings for presidents and prime ministers from different countries. He was also running the first-ever international hotline for psychic consultations. "He almost became like a religion," Bakula said.
Mercado's nieces said that Bakula had the art of seducing their uncle with extravagant presents and a lavish lifestyle which he eventually became used to and fell in love with. As a result, he began doing everything that Bakula asked him to do without questioning the consequences. Bakula offered him a contract at one point. Instead of going through it himself, Mercado asked his lawyer to take a look at it. "The lawyer who reviewed it didn't really properly advise Walter on the scope and the nature of the contract. So, Walter blindly signed the agreement," said former attorney Carlos Velasquez. Under the terms of the contract, Mercado signed over the rights of his past and future works to Bakula's company. He also signed away the rights to his name -- Walter Mercado.
"They seem to have a nice friendship, a good business relationship and so Walter trusted that what Bill Bakula was doing for him was in his best interests," Velasquez said. "There was no timeframe for the agreement. In other words, this thing would last forever. There was very little room to even attempt to terminate the contract. It gave really no benefit to Walter." While Velasquez said that Mercado's family members helped him realize that something was wrong in his relationship with his ex-manager, Bakula insinuated something different. "When family gets involved in the businesses of an artist, very seldomly it works well for the artist," Bakula said.
Mercado said that he did not agree with how Bakula started recycling his old horoscopes and selling it as new predictions but he could not do anything because under the new contract Bakula owned all his materials. Then Bakula stopped paying Mercado. Mercado said that he tried to talk to Bakula to renegotiate a new contract but he did not agree. "We paid him to buy his business, not to rent it. He sold his name. He sold his brand," Bakula said. Bakula said that when they went to court over it, they only sought a dollar in damages because he did not want to hurt Mercado economically. However, Velasquez, who reviewed the court papers said that Bakula was actually seeking about 14 to 15 million dollars from Mercado in damages if they won. After the court ruled that Mercado could not perform under his name until the trademark dispute was settled, he was pulled from the show.
After six years, Mercado won the lawsuit and the rights to his name and his material was returned to him. Two days later he suffered a heart attack. Years of court battles had told on his health. The last episode of his show aired in 2006. Despite multiple attempts at a comeback, he never made it back to television. Mercado died in November 2019 at the age of 87.