Recently,
The Atlantic magazine recounted in print how
Medtronic came to be the major company it is now, after beginning in a garage in Northeast Minneapolis, Fridley Patch
reports.
The Atlantic writer, Monica Smith, visited local landmarks while gathering information on the Fridley-headquartered international company.
“Her research was part of a Smithsonian Institution exhibit called Places of Invention that's now in development. It focuses on seven areas of the United States, including Minnesota's 'medical alley,'” the Patch story reads.
The story republishes this excerpt from the magazine story, below.
One of my favorite stories is about how young Earl [Bakken, Medtronic founder] ... was inspired to become an electrical engineer after seeing Boris Karloff's 1931 "Frankenstein" at the Heights Theatre on Central Avenue near his childhood home in Minneapolis. So in the pouring rain David [Rhees, executive director of The Bakken Museum] drove me by Earl's house and then on to the now-renovated theatre to take photos. He told me about how fun it was to help Earl celebrate his 85th birthday with a special screening of the 1931 movie there. Our next stop was at Medtronic's world headquarters where Earl still maintains an office even though he is nominally retired and lives in Hawaii. I got a kick out of seeing two Frankenstein figures on his desk.