The Rubik's Cube is a mechanical puzzle invented in 1974 by Hungarian sculptor and professor of architecture Ernő Rubik. Originally called the "Magic Cube" by its inventor, this puzzle was renamed "Rubik's Cube" by Ideal Toys in 1980[1] and won the German Game of the Year special award for Best Puzzle that year. It is said to be the world's best-selling toy, with over 300,000,000 Rubik's Cubes and imitations sold worldwide.
In a classic Rubik's Cube, each of the six faces is covered by 9 stickers, among six solid colours (traditionally being white, yellow, orange, red, blue, and green). A pivot mechanism enables each face to turn independently, thus mixing up the colours. For the puzzle to be solved, each face must be a solid colour.
The Cube celebrated its twenty-fifth anniversary in 2005, when a special edition was released, featuring a sticker in the centre of the reflective face (which replaced the white face) with a "Rubik's Cube 1980-2005" logo, and different packaging.
It was so popular in the 80s, that is spawned the cartoon seen above. Rubik, the Amazing Cube was a Saturday morning cartoon that aired from 10 September 1983–1 September 1984 in the United States, produced by Ruby-Spears Productions. The program, broadcast as part of The Pac-Man/Rubik, the Amazing Cube Hour block on ABC, featured a magic Rubik’s Cube named Rubik who could fly through the air and had other special powers. Rubik could only come alive when the colored squares on his sides had been matched up.
Wikipedia contributors. Rubik's Cube. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. October 8, 2008, 15:56 UTC. Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rubik%27s_Cube&oldid=243914284. Accessed October 8, 2008.
Wikipedia contributors. Rubik, the Amazing Cube. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. September 16, 2008, 08:04 UTC. Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rubik,_the_Amazing_Cube&oldid=238765771. Accessed October 8, 2008.
