The giant grandfather clock in the MTV Newsroom will sound its final bells at any moment, which means it's time to remedy that terrible short-term memory and take a look back at the week that was here on the Newsroom blog. As the calendar switched from September to October and the fall weather began to descend, Kanye West remained in the headlines, Madonna ate pizza and zombies were everywhere. Want to have an instant nostalgia trip? Just keep reading.

» The "Fame Kills" tour — starring Kanye West and Lady Gaga — got put on the back burner, but that won't stop Gaga from doing her own shows.

» Madonna and David Letterman had a civil interview and then sat down for a slice.

» Jennifer Hudson celebrated the anniversary of "The Wizard of Oz" with a stirring rendition of "Over the Rainbow" live in Central Park.

» Adam Lambert has already sold a ton of albums, even though the record in question has no title or single. But that's okay, because he's driving people to donate to public schools.

» Before she got sick and had to cancel a bunch of Paramore shows, Hayley Williams wore a tank top on "The Tonight Show" that looked awfully familiar to us.
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"At the end of the three week camp, once I was stable on the skates it felt amazing. Honestly, it felt amazing to be going around the track. It felt amazing to be huddled up with the girls and filming about and hip checking a girl. It really did feel good."

-"Whip It" star and rapper Eve, telling MTV's Josh Horowitz about the experience of training for and filming the roller derby movie, which opens this weekend and was directed by Drew Barrymore. In the film, Eve plays Rosa Sparks, one of the roller girls who recruits Ellen Page to join their squad. Eve has the bruises to match the role — she told MTV News last year that she did most of her own stunts." She was also quite complimentary of co-star Page. "Ellen's a serious girl," she said. "She's an absolute doll, but she's a serious doll."

I attended one other "SNL" rehearsal earlier this year (what's up, Taylor Swift?) and it still does hit you every time you walk into that famed studio that the stage is, well, small. When you watch it on TV week after week, they make it look expansive, but as it turns out it isn't.

It seems that someone else feels the same way about the whole experience: This week's host, Ryan Reynolds, who will be on the show alongside musical guest Lady Gaga. Despite all the experience the Hollywood A-lister has, he too couldn't get over the fact that the stage is smaller than you'd expect it to be.

"It's been amazing. I mean everybody's so supportive a group of people like this not only have they done sketches for forever but they’ve also had hosts come in forever," he told MTV News about his hosting gig. "It’s a pretty well-oiled machine. The stage is about 40 times smaller than I ever though it would be. It's like wearing a sweater made of glass and really hilarious people. It's itty bitty."

Yes, Ryan, it is. And Ryan, please don't be mad at us for confusing you with Ryan Adams. We're still not sure how that happened. Can we still be friends?

By James Dinh

I was only supposed to take pictures and talk to fans at Mariah Carey's mini-concert on "Today" this morning, but somehow ended up riding around New York on her bus with her. How did that happen? Let's rewind back to 7:10 a.m., when I arrived at the Rockefeller Plaza where Mimi was set to play.

Fans were already crammed near the front area of the stage when I met up with production assistant Joel Hanek. Shortly thereafter, Mimi hit the stage. Dressed in a long black leather coat and heels that must have been seven inches high.

The concert began with a bit of nostalgia as Mariah performed "Make It Happen," a classic from her second album. The "Today" hosts came out, gave out freebies and talked to the singer about her new album Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel.

After three more songs from her current album (including my personal favorite "H.A.T.E.U."), Joel and I followed the various other media outlets to the tour bus where we learned we were going to be given a few minutes with Mariah.

What?

I was going to interview her. Joel and I immediately started to brainstorm questions. When it came to be our turn, her publicist told us we'd have to hop on board and do the interview down the street.

Yes, I was in her tour bus. Read more...

By Elliott Wilson, Founder and CEO of RapRadar.com

You could almost guarantee Gucci Mane was gonna crack the Hottest MCs list this year, but you just weren't sure where he would place.

Truth be told, ATL's brightest new star is in plenty of folks' top fives. Yes, La Flare isn't your traditional master of ceremonies, but no artist this year has more effectively merged the underground with the mainstream. He's broken through in '09 and shined through the clouds of controversy that have continued to dampen his career.

A longtime presence in the mixtape playground, the People's Champ (sorry, Mr. Wall) continues to assault the streets ("Awesome" with Snoop Dogg, "Wasted" with Plies and it's remix with OJ da Juiceman) while loudly becoming the go-to guy for aiding R&B heavyweights back to the top of the charts. He brought punch to Mariah Carey's stalker tale ("Obsessed") and gave Mario his biggest hit since Ne-Yo shared his pen game ("Break Up"). At press time, he was even trying to save Omarion's career. Good luck with that one, Gucc!

By Matt Thompson

When I was on the way to the Pierre Hotel in New York City this morning for the Billboard Women In Music event for an attempt at an MTV interview with Lady Gaga, I was expecting big things. Her co-headlining tour with Kanye West had just been abruptly canceled, she had just gotten fresh heat from 50 Cent over the "Fame Kills" tour being "gay" and was only a few weeks removed from her brief affair with Kermit the Frog.

You wouldn't think she would be skittish in public. After all, she has acknowledged a sexual encounter in the back of a New York taxi cab and stated, "F--- yeah I would do it again." When rumors surfaced that she was a hermaphrodite, she casually replied, "My beautiful vagina is very offended." More recently, she crashed the Video Music Awards with flair. She stormed the red carpet wearing a neck brace, faked her death onstage and covered herself from head to toe in firey red lace. What would she unleash on the red carpet at the Pierre?

Gaga made her grand entrance on the red carpet Friday (October 2) morning dressed in another bird-like outfit. It had a green and black feathered top and a long black see-through dress that was certainly revealing. But when it came to speaking with the media, she was a total pro. I was expecting her to lash out at 50 Cent using four letter words, but I was wrong. She called his comments "sad" and then stated the cancellation of the "Fame Kills" tour was a mutual decision between her and Kanye.

She was dressed in total Gaga style, but also very reserved, so she can clearly turn it on and off. What I do know is this: The experience made me like Ms. Gaga just a little bit more.

By Jayson Rodriguez

"Every Saturday 'Rap Attack,' Mr. Magic, Marley Marl ..." — Notorious B.I.G., "Juicy"

Biggie immortalized him in rhyme, but by the time the Brooklyn MC name-checked Mr. Magic on 1994's Ready to Die, the DJ was already a living legend. It was confirmed today that Mr. Magic passed away after suffering a heart attack. (At press time it was unknown how old he was.)

Magic, born John Rivas, was a pioneer in hip-hop and made his mark as the first DJ to host a mixshow hour on commercial radio, which was revolutionary in the early 1980s but as common as a rap CD with a "Parental Advisory" sticker on it today. Back in 1982 when Mr. Magic, along with Marley Marl as his DJ and Tyrone "Fly Ty" Williams as co-producer, kick-started "Rap Attack," the program's launch was arguably as significant to music history as when the Moonman planted the MTV flag in outer space.

"Rap Attack" was a cultural touchstone fondly remembered by countless rappers, breakdancers, journalists and fans who were transfixed by the early sounds of hip-hop transmitted through their speakers by Mr. Magic.

Aside from the musical nods ("Juicy" and Whodini's "Magic's Wand"), Magic was also known for his part in the watershed battle between the Juice Crew — founded by Marley Marl and featuring Big Daddy Kane, Craig G. and Kool G Rap — and KRS-One's Boogie Down Productions.
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"Zombieland" — a horror-comedy flick starring Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone and (inexplicably) that girl from "Little Miss Sunshine" — hits theaters today, and since we're huge fans of gore, head injuries, violence, quips and Jesse Eisenberg, we've compiled a special playlist for the occasion. The undead have been a common theme in pop music for decades, from the Zombies to White Zombie to Michael Jackson's brain-eating-tastic "Thriller." These are our favorite zombie tunes — 13 of them, in fact, because that's extra spooky.

The Cranberries, "Zombie" - A crushing, angry song about the ethno-political violence that racked Northern Ireland for more than 30 years. It's not exactly easy listening, but it's also probably the most popular "zombie" song ever written, so we've included it here. Seriously, if you are of a certain age (say, 25-30), you can remember hearing this tune on the radio — or seeing the video on MTV — every 15 minutes or so. In your he-e-e-e-a-a-a-a-d, indeed.

The Cramps, "Zombie Dance" - Their four-decade reign of campy, S&M-tinged terror came to a close when frontman Lux Interior died earlier this year, but if you wanted a two-minute primer on everything the Cramps were about, well, then look no further than "Zombie Dance." Primal, Tiki-God pounding? De-tuned buzzsaw guitars? Lux's virile, deep-voiced vamping? It's all here.

The Fleshtones, "I Was a Teenage Zombie" - Psycho, lo-fi skuzz from Queens' finest garage rock outfit, "Teenage Zombie" is the title track to a no-fi 1987 horror flick that has (thanks largely to its soundtrack) become a genuine cult classic. The "Teenage Zombie" video — featuring go-go girls and plenty of guitars — earned steady rotation on MTV back in the day.

The Hooters, "All You Zombies" - Mawkish, generic '80s power balladry from Philadelphia's finest white-dude group not named Hall & Oates. This song isn't actually all that great — I think it's about events in the Old Testament — and there's nary a member of the undead to be seen in the video, either, but, hey … it's got "zombies" in the title!

The Magnetic Fields, "Zombie Boy" - A subtly creepy tune about romancing (okay, humping) the dead, sung by a guy — Stephin Merritt — who's so droll that he might actually be dead.

Michael Jackson, "Thriller" - Perhaps you've seen the video?
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Unfortunately for the President, Oprah Winfrey and the residents of the city, Chicago will not be hosting the 2016 Olympics. The announcement came down this morning, and it's an especially bad beatdown for the Windy City, as it was the first nominee eliminated. Soon, the rest of the cities — including Tokyo and Madrid — before Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, won the competition, marking the first time that the Olympics will travel to South America. (The only continents left who haven't hosted an Olympics are Africa and Antarctica — the latter of which seems unlikely to change any time soon.)

Clearly, the U.S. is disappointed, but the city of Chicago is especially crestfallen (the footage of the disappointed crowds gathered to hear the announcement was heartbreaking). The Olympics is always a logistical nightmare for host cities, but they ultimately do an excellent job of boosting commerce and exposing urban centers to the world at large.

But Chicago shouldn't get too down about it. Despite not getting the Olympics, they've still got Lollapalooza, deep-dish pizza, Schuba's, Wrigley Field, that cool building from the cover of Wilco's Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, Wilco and R. Kelly. In fact, having R. Kelly is just like having the Olympics — he even sang at the opening ceremonies at the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City! So Chicago, this video of Kelly's "I Wish" is for you.

Every day a multitude of stars wanders through the halls of MTV News to talk about their latest projects and goof around with staff members. But sometimes we catch stars elsewhere, and that's why we put together Spotted!, a daily compendium of stars in the wild.

The Black Eyed Peas are not strangers to corporate synergy, as their current album The E.N.D. has been attached to both Target and Pepsi. You can add BlackBerry to the list, as frontman Will.i.am was on hand in Australia yesterday to help launch their newest smartphone, the Curve 8520. The rapper/producer is a self-confessed BlackBerry addict, and he says he doesn't like the iPhone because its touchscreen prohibits him from texting.

Will wasn't just on hand for the BlackBerry launch, as his group is moving through Australia on a tour that will keep them down under for another few weeks. All the promotion for The E.N.D. has certainly paid off, as the album's two singles — "Boom Boom Pow" and "I Gotta Feeling" — have spent 26 consecutive weeks at the top of the Billboard Hot 100, which is more continuous time than any other artist in history.

Will wasn't the only famous person hitting the streets yesterday. New couple Khloe Kardashian and Lamar Odom sported their new rings in public, while Khloe's sister Kim dropped in on "The Late Show with David Letterman." Click here for these photos plus the entire "Spotted!" archive, which includes candid shots of Madonna, Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, Lady Gaga, Shakira, Mariah Carey, the Jonas Brothers and the casts of "Gossip Girl" and "New Moon"!