I don't think I have ever owned a Rubik's Cube.  I have also never solved the game.  However, I can order one from Amazon.com for $5.19. A larger one costs $20. Hate to stoop to this level, but there is a  Donald Trump Rubik's Cube .   From the  Japan Times  in 2017. The story of  Rubik's Cube : Invented in 1974 by Hungarian Professor Erno Rubik ( right ). Has 26 cubes with 6 colors--white, yellow, red, orange, green and blue--plus 519 quintillion permutations. Began to be sold in 1980, and at one stage in 1981, three of the 10 best-selling books was on how to solve this cube. The  New York Times  in 1982 reported that the craze had died. But Rubik's patent expired in 2000, and the craze returned in the early 2000s When it sold 350 million, it became the best-selling toy in the world , according to some sources. Now, 500 million sold. However,  this article  says that the cube ranks #14, with Barbie ( 3 billion sold ) at #...

I created this posting a few days ago, and thought it was too busy and statistical to post.  Had just about made up my mind to just toss it away, then I thought, perhaps a few of you actually desire numbers and such.  So why waste all this work.  For most of you who don't like this kind of detail,   just skip this early portion and scroll down to my usual style --where there is this row of asterisks--for I will then write about the wonderful state of the Yen vs Dollar conversion rate if you have Japan in your travel plans.   But, whoops, certainly looks like, again, too much data.  So I add a second row of asterisks for many to scroll down to save time.  Then, like yesterday, a segue into best films and a Taylor Swift sighting in London. So anyway, have you been going to your hometown movie theater lately?  From  Box Office Mojo,  here are the figures by year for the USA. Year Total Gross %± LY Releases Average #1 Release 1977 $443,...