By the time they reunited in 1980, Bard says, his mother, Yolana, had become a wealthy fortune-teller.

FORBES: Simply divined

This stuff may not stand up to scientific experiment, but a clever fortune-teller can make people think that he can see around corners.

FORBES: Simply divined

La Tour's oil painting "The Fortune Teller" (circa 1630) captures the onlookers' fascination with an exotic-looking gypsy fortune teller, but also a wariness.

WSJ: Bohemia in Paris | 'Around the Chat Noir' at the Mus��e de Montmartre and 'Bohemias' at the Grand Palais