Linda in Northfield, Mensagenda Editor
About Mensagenda
Minnesota Mensa published Vol. I, No. 1 of our newsletter, then called the Minnesota Mensa, in June of 1965. Approaching six decades later and winning awards along the way, we continue to provide a monthly publication, now called Mensagenda.
As expected in a newsletter, we inform our local membership with organizational updates and provide details about our events. The real benefit is that, just like our events, Mensagenda is for our members, by our members.
The love of learning in Mensa is not just about supporting our scholarship but in enriching your own mind and sharing your knowledge, skills, and interests. Read articles and regular columns ranging from scientific explanations to humor in everyday life. Check out our members’ photography, drawing, painting, knitting and quilting, and crafting skills.
What would you like to share? Do you have expertise in a particular field of study or hobby? Want to express your opinion? Have you traveled recently? Do you write poetry? Can you create word games, numerical puzzles, or trivia questions? What could you say about…well, you get the picture.
Mensagenda is another way that Minnesota Mensa provides “a stimulating intellectual and social environment for its members.” What could you contribute if you joined Mensa?
There’s More to Read
Mensa membership provides access to the publications from other chapters, American Mensa, and Mensa International. Click here to learn more.
Featured Cover Art
Shadowy. Photo by Doug in Apple Valley.
The shadowy characters were photographed from the Skyride at the State Fair.
[Editor: I selected Doug’s photo specifically for August to coincide with the State Fair.]
Marx Brotherhood SIG
by Kenneth in Burnsville
On March 20, 1964, Harpo Marx was a special guest for a benefit concert performed by the Riverside Symphony. Harpo conducted the orchestra. He performed a couple of medleys as a soloist. Then Harpo turned to the audience and said, “Believe it or not … I’m gonna talk.” Then he brilliantly narrated Peter and the Wolf by Sergei Prokofiev. This was the only time that Harpo Marx performed in character and allowed his voice to be recorded. The recording engineer set aside the tape and forgot all about it. Harpo passed away six months later, following heart surgery, at age 75, making this also the last time Harpo had been recorded doing anything.
The tape of this concert was recently discovered in the recording engineer’s vault. It was in a box with the wrong label on it. The recording has since been restored and remastered. The announcement of its discovery and release was made in June 2026. Harpo Speaks!: The Riverside Symphony Concert featuring Peter and the Wolf, by Riverside Symphony and Harpo Marx, debuted at no. 6 on Billboard’s Traditional Classical Albums chart during its first week, and at no. 25 on the Classical Albums chart. The following two news stories best cover the most significant details of this new audio release.
NPR: ʹSilentʹ Marx brother Harpo speaks in newly found recording
https://bit.ly/4eZwrLO (The last part is case-sensitive)
Smithsonian magazine: A Rare Recording of Harpo Marx Speaking Publicly Was Mislabeled in an Archive for Decades. Now You Can Listen to the ‘Silent’ Comedian Yourself
https://bit.ly/4yFTrHF (The last part is case-sensitive)