The good Dr. McNamara dug this up from the vault, and it’s an interesting little curiosity: the first bit of film showing a papal blessing.

It’s Leo XIII, in the 1890’s, and McNamara notes:

It’s said that when this short film clip was shown in the largely Protestant sections of the Midwest, it started a minor riot among those who thought the Pope was coming to take over America.

See what all the fuss was about, below.