90 years ago today, track and field star Jesse Owens won his fourth gold medal at the Berlin Olympics—a first for any American athlete. Two years later, the Malaysian Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman decided to expel Singapore from the federation. On that day, a tearful Lee Kuan Yew announced at a televised press conference that Singapore was a sovereign, independent nation. 104 years ago today, Philip Larkin, the English poet and novelist was born. And, 95 years ago today, the cartoon character Betty Boop by Max Fleischer made her first appearance.