About

Walter Mercado, also known under the stage name Shanti Ananda, was a Puerto Rican television astrologer. Known as a flamboyant television personality, Mercado has fans around the world, inspiring a Netflix documentary Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado. He died in November 2019.

History

Born in 1932, Mercado started his career as a dancer and and singer, as well as acting on Puerto Rican telenovelas Un adiósen el recuerdo and Larga distancia.^[1]

Following a several appearances guest astrologer on Puerto Rican television, he began a regular segment on the mid-day show El Show de las 12 in 1970. He continued to host a weekly astrology show until 2010.

Mercado died of kidney failure on November 2nd, 2019. He was buried in San Juan Puerto Rico.

Mucho, Mucho Amor

On July 8th, 2020, Netflix released a documentary about Mercado's life, Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado. The film received positive reviews from critics. The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes ^[2] rated the film 100% fresh (based on 30 reviews). The site's Critics Consensus reads, "An absorbing and affectionate tribute to a unique individual, Mucho Mucho Amor should prove fascinating for Walter Mercado fans as well as first-timers." Fellow review aggregator Metacritic^[3] rated the film 74 (based on 10 reviews), calling the response "generally favorable."

Reputation

Walter Mercado is a beloved figure throughout Puerto Rico and Latin America. He appeared on numerous English-language talk shows, as well, including those hosted by Howard Stern and Sally Jessy Raphael. At the peak of his career he had more than 120 million views.^[4]

Personal Life

In 2003, he said that he had a "spiritual relationship" with Mariette Detotto, a Brazilian actress that he had a television show with.

In 2010, Walter Mercado changed his name to Shanti Ananda, which translates from Sanskrit to "peace happiness."

Search Interest

External References