Good morning.

By 2013, the screen in your hand was starting to share the room with the screen on the wall.

The television was still the big shared screen — especially for sports, news and prime-time shows.

But now a phone might be in your hand while you watched it.

Maybe you were checking a score.

Maybe you were texting someone about what was happening on TV.

Maybe a laptop or tablet was open nearby while the television kept playing across the room.

Home broadband had become common, smartphones were moving into the mainstream, and the living room was becoming a place where several screens could all be competing for your attention at once.

It felt normal surprisingly quickly.

On this Saturday in 2013, though, one of the day's biggest stories came from a room thousands of miles away, where a vote decided the future home of the Olympic Games.

We'll get there.

First, let's see what September 7 has left behind.

1901 — The Boxer Protocol was signed in Beijing. The agreement between China and 11 foreign powers formally settled major issues arising from the Boxer Uprising and imposed significant obligations on China after the conflict.

1940 — The Blitz began with a major German air attack on London. German aircraft struck the British capital in large numbers, beginning the prolonged bombing campaign that would make nighttime air raids part of daily life for millions of civilians.

1963 — The Pro Football Hall of Fame opened in Canton, Ohio. Its 17-member charter class was enshrined as the museum began preserving and celebrating the history of professional football.

1977 — Jimmy Carter and Omar Torrijos signed the Panama Canal treaties. The agreements established the terms that would eventually transfer control of the Panama Canal from the United States to Panama.

1979 — ESPN launched. The new sports network went on the air with SportsCenter as its first program, beginning a major change in how Americans could follow sports on television.

Today is Labor Day in the United States.

It's the federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September to recognize American workers.

Now let's go back to a Saturday in 2013.

The television was still easy to find.

It might have been mounted on the wall or sitting on an entertainment stand, and on a Saturday night it could still become the center of the room.

But it no longer had the room to itself.

A smartphone might be sitting on the couch cushion beside you.

A tablet could be on the coffee table.

A laptop might be open while a football game played in the background.

By 2013, home broadband was common and smartphones had reached a majority of American adults, though neither was universal.

That changed the rhythm of an ordinary night.

You could watch one thing while checking another.

You could follow a game on television while reading reactions, messaging friends or checking scores somewhere else.

The big screen still mattered.

It was just beginning to share the conversation.

And on September 7, one global announcement was about to create a very different kind of future plan.

On September 7, 2013, members of the International Olympic Committee met in Buenos Aires to choose the host city for the 2020 Summer Olympics.

The final contenders were Tokyo and Istanbul.

Tokyo won.

For Japan, the decision meant the Summer Olympics would return to Tokyo for the first time since 1964.

It was a moment built around looking forward.

Seven years seemed like plenty of time to prepare.

New venues would be planned.

Athletes who were still teenagers — or younger — would eventually train for a chance to compete there.

And around the world, people could begin imagining what the 2020 Games might look like.

We know now that the road to those Games would become far more complicated than anyone in that room could have expected.

But on this September Saturday in 2013, that future was still simple:

Tokyo had won.

Vin Diesel was back in deep space.

Riddick returned the actor to the role of Richard B. Riddick, the dangerous survivor at the center of the science-fiction series that had begun with Pitch Black.

The movie had arrived in theaters the day before.

And on September 7:

Riddick led the domestic daily box-office rankings.

It was a familiar kind of early-2010s sequel — a franchise returning to a darker character and world that already had an established fan base.

For moviegoers that Saturday, Riddick was on top.

On the Billboard Hot 100 dated September 7, 2013, the top two songs were:

No. 1 — Robin Thicke featuring T.I. and Pharrell — “Blurred Lines”

No. 2 — Katy Perry — “Roar”

“Blurred Lines” was still holding the top spot.

But “Roar” was right behind it.

And that makes this particular chart a useful little snapshot of movement.

One of the biggest songs of the summer was still No. 1.

One of the fall's biggest hits was already closing in.

On the following chart, “Roar” would reach the top.

But on September 7, the crown had not changed hands yet.

Saturday night brought one of college football's biggest rivalries to Michigan Stadium.

No. 17 Michigan hosted No. 14 Notre Dame in only the second night game ever played at the Big House.

The crowd was enormous:

115,109.

At the time, that was an NCAA attendance record for a college football game.

And the game gave them plenty to watch.

Michigan quarterback Devin Gardner accounted for five touchdowns and 376 total yards as the Wolverines beat Notre Dame:

41–30.

It was a major win under the lights, in front of a crowd large enough to become part of the story itself.

And if you weren't one of the 115,109 inside the stadium, there was a good chance television was how you were following along.

Which brings us back to that second-screen living room.

September 7, 2013 was a strong reminder that Saturday television could still revolve around live events.

Local affiliates could shift, delay, preempt or substitute programming, particularly around live sports.

But the major prime-time picture looked like this:

ABC — NASCAR's Federated Auto Parts 400 from Richmond filled the evening.

CBS — NCIS: Los Angeles at 8:00, followed by 48 Hours at 9:00 and another 48 Hours at 10:00.

NBC — American Ninja Warrior at 8:00, followed by Do No Harm at 10:00.

FOX — College football: West Virginia at Oklahoma.

And on cable:

ESPN — Notre Dame at Michigan at 8:00.

That is a pretty recognizable 2013 Saturday night.

NASCAR on one screen.

College football on another.

Crime and competition shows if sports weren't your thing.

And perhaps a phone in your hand the entire time, checking scores or talking about what you were already watching.

What would have won your remote that night?

This one is a broader 2013 story, not something that began specifically on September 7.

During the year, Walt Disney World was testing and rolling out MyMagic+, a new system built around digital trip planning and the original MagicBand.

The idea was ambitious.

A wearable band could connect parts of the vacation experience that had previously depended on separate tickets, room keys and other steps.

Guests could use the developing system for things such as park admission, hotel-room access, purchases and FastPass planning.

But the transition was still underway.

Not every guest already had a MagicBand, and the rollout was not complete.

That in-between stage feels very 2013.

Technology was increasingly moving off the desk and into the things people carried — and now, at Disney World, even onto the wrist.

If today's Labor Day plans include a cookout, a few basic habits can help keep food safer.

Keep raw meat and other raw foods separated from foods that are already ready to eat.

When cooking meat, use a food thermometer rather than relying only on appearance.

And get perishable foods back into refrigeration promptly instead of leaving them sitting out longer than necessary.

Food safety doesn't have to make the cookout complicated.

A little separation, careful cooking and sensible refrigeration can go a long way.

Take the free health assessment →

Health Snap provides general wellness information, not individualized medical advice.

You're sharing your date with royalty, artists, musicians, comedians and actors.

🎂 Elizabeth I — 1533 — Tudor monarch and Queen of England and Ireland

🎂 Grandma Moses — 1860 — American folk artist known for rural-life paintings

🎂 Sonny Rollins — 1930 — Influential jazz tenor saxophonist and composer

🎂 Buddy Holly — 1936 — Pioneering rock-and-roll singer and songwriter

🎂 Leslie Jones — 1967 — Comedian and actress known for Saturday Night Live

🎂 Evan Rachel Wood — 1987 — Actress known for Thirteen and Westworld

Is September 7 your birthday?

Tell us — we'd love to hear from you.

And if someone you know was born today, send them this issue and show them what was happening on their day.

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