Agent Nelson Van Alden

Nelson Van Alden (played by Michael Shannon) is a government revenue agent in the Bureau of Prohibition whose attention has been diverted to Atlantic City's treasurer, Nucky Thompson.

[@vahn_legaia]

I'm not sure if anyone reading this has been in a similar position in their job but I feel like I relate to Van Alden here, to an extent. I went from being respected at a job all the way to the bottom of the totem pole, being pissed on by someone like O'Banion for what seemed like ages. It does not bode well on your mental health.

[@jinchuriki7022]

Explain your history.

[@ChernorizecHrabyr]

Tell us more my dude? I have been in similar positions.

[@mmodnao]

I could not agree more. Thanks for sharing.

[@sid2112]

@@jinchuriki7022 What's to explain. He was a federal agent during Prohibition and then the 21st Amendment happened.

[@cwisthbulpabont7749]

This was way before he even was with O'Banion

[@mzytryck]

I love the way the diners drain their cups as soon as they realise it's a raid. I suppose you would train yourself to have that as an instant reflex if you were a drinker at this time.

[@zolafuckass8606]

If you're going to jail at the time, might as well be loaded.

[@Gemmabeta]

@@zolafuckass8606 consumption of alcohol was not illegal, only sale and production was.

[@zolafuckass8606]

@@Gemmabeta true, but they'd still likely been brought in on some trumped up charge. They'd eventually be released, of course, but why not get tight for an evening?

[@lukim2744]

@@zolafuckass8606 so that's what "get tight" means.

[@redseaford9426]

@@Gemmabeta same as Marijuana in half the country... even to this day it STILL isn't legal everywhere

[@LumpyAdams]

There was literally no reason to punch the guy lmao. Love this scene.

[@Bennahr_Fett]

He had to subdue him.

[@mikeg2491]

It was God’s will

[@Aven-Sharma1991]

@@mikeg2491: that god bullshit is a fairytale,. No such thing fucko.

[@King-of-Collies]

@@Aven-Sharma1991 you are dumb bro. It’s part of Van Alden’s character.

[@TheCitrusdude]

@@Aven-Sharma1991 Wrong.

[@TheSoldier0fortunE]

The scene immediately after this had me in stitches. ''Right there. Loose spring.''

[@patrick4662]

It was a damn hot scene. I needed a bowl of turtle soup and a glass of cold buttermilk just to settle me down afterwards.

[@laprodience3002]

I can't remember what was the scene after this. Help me pls

[@karldilkington8802]

@@laprodience3002 him and his wife in the hotel room she was turned on by him beating the guy in the restaurant lol

[@laprodience3002]

@@karldilkington8802 ahaha thank you

[@rubenoteiza9261]

This seems a rip off from the scene of the frozen lake in That 70s Show when Kelso and Jackie reconcile after being separated and they go into his van to renew their relationships. Then we can see the van from the outside shaking violently, Eric says to Donna, "they are back together, yes" and then we see the interior of the band with Kelso dancing and jumping around.

[@FeelinGoode]

Laughed my ass off in this scene cause I didn't expect it.

[@striderm]

They missed the part with his wife gettin' all hot seeing his perfomance of authority.

[@4EyedAnimation]

and that was the whole point of the scene...

[@niteowl2397]

I know it’s sounds stupid but that’s the only reason I clicked.

[@magicargo1232]

Yup then it cuts to the bed moving

[@royfokerpoker1802]

Horrible upload again on KZbin. No one has the common sense to upload the whole clip in its entirety with his girl and the bed springs. Fail

[@gfunkmadness]

That waiter jumped over the counter and came at van alden with a chainsaw he had a right to defend himself

[@swevixeh]

He took the booze as a down payment

[@mikeg2491]

Chrissy…..he’s fucked up

[@NothingSubversive]

I saw that movie, I thought it was bullshit

[@angelc4919]

@@mikeg2491 don’t these asshole have medicine they’re supposed to take ??

[@LumpyAdams]

You more creative than Spielberg. You know that?

[@A_massive_wog]

I loved this scene. It was a Van Alden power fantasy.

[@RomeoDiG1022]

Notice how after he said “This is a raid” every man in the camera shot finishes their drinks a quick as possible 😂😂😂😂

[@blanketdtf]

Van Alden always did big things out of nowhere. This, and going on the run for one

[@johnnyutah9462]

Everyone emptied their glasses when he announced a raid. Great writing

[@hadria-edgezreplika3514]

I imagine being married with this guy all dates and anniversaries go like this 😂

[@crimsonknight7011]

I remember seeing a thing where a prohibition agent tested places that on how long till he was offered a drink. The record was New Orleans where he got offered one right after getting off the plane by the cab driver

[@matthewriley7826]

Probably the same policy for how long it took to be offered a bribe😂

[@rondobson1828]

Wow. Mrs. Van Alden is really gonna take care of Nelson tonight!

[@snapjitzy]

I went from hating van Alden to actually liking him at end of season 5

[@MB-fo2sk]

He beat the shit out of that poor waiter lol.

[@matthewriley7826]

Feds don’t need much of an excuse for excessive force.

[@michaeldiekmann6494]

@@matthewriley7826 Today they do

[@mygoogleemail2063]

They he beat the hell out of dat pssy!

[@ZakkeTV]

so... no tips?

[@fort809]

@@michaeldiekmann6494 really? The feds murdered a guy’s wife and kids at Ruby Ridge, then played his wife’s voice over speakers to psychologically torture him for a week. Feds have never needed an excuse to abuse the public

[@elxaime]

"Take it, catalogue it, and destroy it - except for one bottle of champagne, which I want brought chilled to my house tonight."

[@brolysmash9333]

Lmao 😂 as it should be, he may get some that night.

[@anthonytunstall2147]

0:32 everybody drinkin their alcohol fast as hell tryin to get rid of 'evidence' lol

[@furtim1]

Awesome

[@ellagunawan]

I didn't realize that before lol

[@WYCD]

Timestamps get likes!

[@EazyEv1.0]

Lol I knew I was the only one who noticed 😅 🤣😂

[@seanmcmanus2777]

When you just joined the AA and are out with your wife.

[@shamshirhussain8198]

🤣🤣🤣

[@michaelleonard1491]

Classic

[@donthoren8079]

I've seen this scene many times and just caught something, at the end, the manager says his name is Carl Switzer. Carl Switzer is the real name of the actor who played "Alfalfa" in the Our Gang comedies in the late 30's. And there's your random, useless fact for the day!

[@juniorjames7076]

Carl (Alfalfa) Switzer as an adult was in Its A Wonderful Life, he's the guy who turned the key to open the pool in that famous high school reunion dance scene.

[@gary609906]

My neighbor is named Carl Switzer... Of all the gin joints.

[@hulahula6182]

"Oh noo! He killed the original Alfafa! "

[@kendrickmaeldun]

Mrs. Van Alden started getting a flow right then and there

[@thesnare100]

free dinner, if you're going to bust him, wait until after you've eaten!

[@zubiproductions9440]

Pretty unnecessary to wreck that poor waiter like that. Pretty certain that dude was no threat. 😂😂

[@LumpyAdams]

That's why Nelson is one of the greatest television characters lol. There's always a threat of violence.

[@ck891]

Welcome to the 1920’s son

[@el34glo59]

Absolutely hilarious

[@ConstantineJoseph]

Gangsterism was rife before WW2 and the police had to be just as intimidating. That's how they exact law and order.

[@doriandundee9906]

He was reaching! You all saw it!

[@trenttrip6205]

you cut right at the wife looking extremely turned on lol

[@rondobson1828]

People who put clips up on youtube sometimes have questionable awareness.

[@Ogrematic]

Great idea. Let's try to make something illegal that's been around for thousands of years. Good job. That couldn't possibly backfire.

[@MattHadder]

That's the government for ya. Marijuana is way less harmful than alcohol, but it's still federally illegal. They don't care about you. They want to impose their ideals on everyone. Like every government

[@demam41]

That poor waiter didn’t have to get beat up like that lol

[@royfokerpoker1802]

LoL

[@vcdep991]

They needed a mop at Nelsons table after his wife saw him regulate during the raid.

[@TheSatyam182]

definition of badass!

[@OhioPaulDE]

Uh, no?

[@robertswitzer990]

The man, trying to keep my family down.

[@xyz-bz1fc]

"Carl Switzer"!? Alfalfa did a back to the future!

[@the_road__warrior6185]

See , Nelson had game. All’s it took wuz his lady seeing him in action.

[@Herbsandspices100]

Prohibition agents- the party poopers of the 1920s. :)

[@matthewriley7826]

Course their wages were so low they’d let the party go on if they got a cut.

[@kimmyfreak200]

just began watching this show and i would say alden is unhinged

[@matthewriley7826]

lol that’s an understatement.

[@Akerzun]

This guy is a real party pooper

[@matthewriley7826]

Most prohi’s were. Even the corrupt ones.

[@svfox]

i would suspect all 50 patrons would run to the whiskey room and start draining it all

[@BlakeFerret]

1:06 more like tag it, catalog it, and drink it or resell it

[@leeroyjenkins6061]

Hard to believe that this was ever law.

[@theQuestion626]

Crazy isn’t it? But then again if you consider how bars used to be 24 /7 and alcoholism was a common as breathing then you would see this as actually quite sane.

[@theQuestion626]

@Griff the Pyrate BastardI agree prohibition was a complete waste just as much as the war on drugs. However authoritarianism I don’t think really applies to this context.

[@SanDeezyBreezy61986]

@@theQuestion626 true. It was common for husbands to spend entire paychecks at the bar. However, trying to impose laws based on morality only lead to even bigger problems (the rise and enrichment of the mob.)

[@NeuralNetProcessor]

The sad thing about all this is, this kind of overzealous vindictiveness _does not_ work. Law enforcement gets stronger and stronger, and yet the sale and use of illegal drugs not only continues, but gets even worse (note the advent of fentanyl) as time goes on.

[@DrJ-hx7wv]

There's no drug war. Your comment assumes there is.

[@rickyray2794]

I thought it was only illegal to purchase and resell NEW liquor/booze? I thought it was okay as long as that booze was purchased before prohibition took hold.

[@oneproudbrowncoat]

Nope, consumption was illegal too, unless it was certified medicinal. (Hence the old phrase "prescription whiskey", complete with official stamp.)

[@brainstewX]

@@oneproudbrowncoat The 18th Amendment says manufacture, sale and transportation, not consumption.

[@oneproudbrowncoat]

@@brainstewX Per the National Prohibition Act (commonly called the "Volstead Act") of October 28, 1919: "No person shall on or after the date when the eighteenth amendment to the Constitution of the United States goes into effect, manufacture, sell, barter, transport, import, export, deliver, furnish or *possess* any intoxicating liquor except as authorized in this Act, and all the provisions of this Act shall be liberally construed to the end that the use of intoxicating liquor as a beverage may be prevented."

[@yawgmoth5662]

The raid came out of no where.

[@Michael-mh2tw]

front door

[@masterzombie161]

Shows that the agents were no different than the criminals. Alcohol would be legal in the next few years and they ruined many lives to those who possessed it.

[@hugglepuff1]

They *did* exonerate a lot of people who were arrested and jailed during prohibition.

[@tyrellfisher4248]

These men were sworn agents protecting the integrity of US Federal law. You don't know what your talking about. If Uncle Sam says no, it's no....

[@BlueSapphi3]

What episode is this?

[@Jgrimwald]

He use to be such a nice man.

[@michaeldominici610]

Now he doesn't believe in ANYTHING!

[@Gaba_Ghoul]

He never was a nice man

[@tillerman7272]

he was a puritan

[@Hartley_Hare]

@@tillerman7272 I liked the guy. He was, briefly, the one character who tried to live by a coherent moral code.

[@TheWuFinancial]

He turns to her as if to say “see how fuckin cool I am?”

[@alfiovillordo350]

In retrospect, he should have gone for the champagne.

[@MH-fb5kr]

Quite the party pooper.

[@anthonytaylor7928]

He should have stayed an agent

[@JustSomeCanadianGuy]

The last time Van Alden did his job properly in the whole series.

[@shabadoo24]

How many bottles found their way in the trunk of a car

[@flightofthebumblebee9529]

The waiter is such a tool. Lol. "We DO sir." Lmfao

[@justaguy328]

Van Alden is Dwight Schrute if he took a different career path in life lol

[@TheCoolProfessor]

Now THIS is how law enforcement should act!

[@JavaoftheLava]

Sting operations for recreational drug use? That's evil.

[@danielmiller9012]

Thank god LEOs make fuck all for money, enjoy poverty.

[@Bennahr_Fett]

This is how they act. Even without warrants. Thats the part of condundrum of the war on substance abuse and distribution.

[@Michael-mh2tw]

@@JavaoftheLava It's not 'evil'. I don't agree with it, but it's certainly not 'evil'.

[@Michael-mh2tw]

@@Bennahr_Fett There should be a war on substance abuse. Maybe not a war on drugs, but surely the abuse part should be of our concern.

[@bozoforce]

That goofy run...

[@jruth77]

Guy thinks he’s the main character

[@ExMachina70]

Now, THIS is how you impress your date.

[@DerpyDragonful]

That's how you command a room.

[@johnmalkowski9485]

*Sigma* moment

[@wurly164]

Someone is getting some tonight

[@InfoBinger]

Funny on how when Nelson says 'This is a raid!' all the old man chug their alcohol drinks.

[@tylenol_jones]

prohibition should have been the end of women's suffrage no cap

[@randyjohnson3412]

Damn that's a lot of hooch they were hoarding!

[@eyegrinder94]

Alcohol can occur in nature as well, fermentation is a very natural process.

[@brutallyhonest123]

You can eat all the rotten fruit you want buddy.

[@SergeantExtreme]

@@brutallyhonest123 You're 50% of the way there to making bootleg liquor.

[@el34glo59]

And Coke is natural too. What's your point

[@eyegrinder94]

@@el34glo59 Are you expecting me to remember what my point was 8 years ago?

[@edwardheaney3641]

@@eyegrinder94 No, we all know spineless fools like you dont have moral tenets lasting more than a few seconds.

[@danieldevito6380]

The fine is $5 Ms Randolph

[@BearDownCats96]

It’s actually insane that this is real

[@ThisHandleIsInteresting]

Uhhh, it’s an HBO drama.

[@BearDownCats96]

@@ThisHandleIsInteresting no that this shit happened raids for alcohol

[@danmystro]

@@ThisHandleIsInteresting No, this is a documentary

[@kb4903]

Most police are embarrassed by a raid like this. They hate busting drugs as it’s a waste of time in the grand scheme of things.

[@NoellaScott]

Poor guy just doing his job - service industry hasn't been respected since it was invented

[@theodorekaczynski8147]

SIR STOP RESISTING SIR STOP RESISTING

[@highthai7]

I think Van Alden and Knox would have made a good team.

[@domfrommelb27]

Funny don't they all drink now in America

[@lisatheboywonder6744]

Yeah. They drank during prohibition. That is how organized crime flourished. If you tell a large group of people they cant have something they will make sure to go to great lengths to get it. That is why prohibition was stupid. You forced an entire country to not drink they are going to want to drink it more. Especially since its illegal and you have to do it in secret. People like doing things that are pleasurable especially if they know it is forbidden.

[@janetsminten8196]

@Dodge Mustang well aren't you just special

[@Michael-mh2tw]

@@lisatheboywonder6744 Yep. You force an entire country not the murder, they're just going to murder more. You ban tax fraud? They'll just do even more fraud. You ban mass rape? You betcha you'll see mass rape numbers skyrocket.

[@HitPeace]

Night and day!

[@mole389]

Bar owner obviously not paying big enough bribe

[@TheKingTywinLannister]

When cop wants to impress his wife

[@calvinmilton9008]

That was so lame of him even wife said don’t 😂

[@slydEvil35]

The war on drugs in a nutshell. Big show that ultimately does nothing.

[@surengrigorian7888]

Legalisation would be worse. Not that the war on drugs is good, but legalisation would be worse.

[@slydEvil35]

@@surengrigorian7888 narc

[@ThatsCrazyBroAnyways]

Crazy how alcohol is legal now

[@falseking989]

The Volstead act was one of the worst ideas in history. It was also lobbied by women. Figure that 🤣.

[@SloopADoopy]

He is going in the wrong hole when they get home

[@coomr419]

No alcohol for you noobs

[@fightsforrights]

He didn't have to do that, he could have just had a good time.with his wife. Instead he went the other way of boasting and too proud in front of her. God doesn't like ugly period!!

[@smileyfawler8454]

Yeah but it made his wife really horny.

[@TheDragDavid]

His wife was suprised/disappointed he didnt arrest the waiter on the spot earlier when they ordered so he wanted to impress her

[@FourthDimensionalHillBilly]

And that’s what they plan on doing with your guns.

[@TwoTwentyTampa]

I liked Van Alden all the way to the end

[@mygoogleemail2063]

Nelson is gettin' some tonight!

[@ihatemyself2208]

Agent sawicki, run like game character