Celebrity Astrologer Walter Mercado Dies at 87: Reports

Puerto Rican astrologer Walter Mercado, also known as Shanti Ananda, gives a press conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on Feb. 14, 2012. Mercado, a flamboyant astrologer and television personality whose daily TV appearances entertained many across Latin America for more than a decade, died on Nov. 26. AP Photo/Dennis M. Rivera Pichardo, File

Walter Mercado, an astrologer and television personality whose daily TV appearances entertained many across Latin America as well as the United States, has died at the age of 88, according to reports.

Hospital spokeswoman Sofia Luquis told The Associated Press on Sunday that Mercado died due to kidney failure at Auxilio Mutuo Hospital in San Juan, Puerto Rico, over the weekend.