Welcome to ON THIS DAY! Each day, we'll look at a few moments from history and popular culture. We'll show you where you can rediscover classic movies and music, or read more about great moments in history. We'll point you to e-books, downloadable and streamable music and film, and e-audio; and of course, we haven't forgotten about physical books or DVDs.

	On this day in 1854, Henry David Thoreau's Walden was published. Walden is a reflection on the two years Thoreau spent living in a cabin near Walden Pond in Massachusetts; in it, Thoreau stresses the value and importance of self-reliance and simplicity. The book, and the time Thoreau spent at the cabin, were inspired by his transcendentalist philosophy, which holds that people and nature are inherently good, and are inevitably corrupted by society and its institutions. Walden is available as an e-book or e-audio from OverDrive, as an audiobook, or in print.
	On this day in 1930, the cartoon character Betty Boop made her first appearance in the short "Dizzy Dishes." The character would evolve over the next two years into her final form; in her earliest appearances, she was drawn as an anthropomorphized poodle. By 1939, 110 Betty Boop cartoons were made, and the character has had a lasting cultural impact; Betty Boop merchandise is still popular, even among people who've never seen the original cartoons. Several of those shorts are collected in Betty Boop: Her Wildest Adventures, available for streaming at Hoopla.
	And on this day in 1963, Whitney Houston was born. Houston was a dominant presence on the pop charts in the late 1980s and 1990s; between 1985 and 1987, she had seven consecutive #1 hit singles (among them, "Saving All My Love for You," "How Will I Know," and "I Wanna Dance With Somebody"). Her singing has been tremendously influential on the pop and R&B singers who followed. Several of Houston's albums are available for streaming or download at Freegal.