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522 MOTION PICTURES I922-I945
had picked up in substance, and almost in the very words, what I myself had hoped to express to him.
Nor did he drop the thought there. He went on to explain how vital it was that there grow in the minds and hearts of the people the desire to see the realization of the good. On that theme he preached a wonderful sermon that made me profoundly happy. I thought then, and I have thought many times since, that it was worth all the worries and the travail of the Italian picture problem to have had such a heartening experience with this holy man.
One particular incident of this meeting was indelibly etched in my memory. In the midst of the conversation the Pope picked up a big loose-leaf book, two or three inches thick, lying on his table, and pushed it toward me. He explained that this volume of reports contained the series of original communiques sent out from the Comintern in Moscow to comrades and fellow travelers all over the world, and that one of the most emphatic orders was to "go out and get hold of the cinema of the world." This was a shocking revelation, backed as it was by such irrefutable evidence, and it sheds clear light on Communist efforts in subsequent years.
When we had finished discussing motion pictures, the Holy Father went at once into the Pro Deo movement, of which Cardinal Pacelli had given me some account on our trip over. I was again impressed by the unity and the world sweep of the organized idea: that the Church was leading a movement of religionists everywhere, a united movement for God and the good in a concerted drive to oppose the spread of Communism.
Before we left his presence— and I left with reluctance and deep reverence— the Holy Father blessed us. It was an inspiring experience, for which I shall never cease to be thankful.
Although my visits with the Pope and with Mussolini and the Ambassador's dinner were the high spots of my ten days in Rome, many other activities fitted into the intricate web of our foreign relations in this Old World capital. We took time to see the points of greatest interest, old and new, from churches to restaurants; various friends in Rome were alwavs ready to accompanv us on such jaunts. Both the members of our Embassy staff and Italian film men, including representatives of our American companies, were helpful. Harold Smith always knew what could be done there to advantage, to further good relations. Signor Roncoroni— perhaps the leading figure in the Italian film industry— took me to lunch and showed me through the great motion picture studios recently completed at the Quadaro, near Rome. I remember watching the filming of a scene from a historical Roman picture and unconsciously comparing it with Hollywood. I met all our film men and the representatives of the press, who were extremely use