John Adams meets the Dutch

John Adams has an awkward meeting in Amsterdam.

Present value of $10 million from 1790:

$259 million using the Consumer Price Index
$242 million using the GDP deflator
$4.8 billion using the unskilled wage
$10.8 billion using the nominal GDP per capita
$12.3 billion using the Production Worker Compensation
$860.00 billion using the relative share of GDP

A modest request indeed.

(All rights to this clip belong to HBO).

[westxlcr]

John Adams’ tour of Europe:
The British: 😡😠😒
The French: 🥴😜🥳
The Dutch: 😶😐😶

[Trazynn]

"How much money do you seek?" typical Dutch, straight to the point.

[ConnMtenor]

"A modest man". Dutch for " I LOVE this MAN. Give him what he wants."

[marneus]

That's the most cheerful bunch of Dutch I've ever seen.

[Guirolon]

The Dutch: The Original “GoFundMe” sponsors.

[EyeLean]

I love how the Dutch sit at a distance, arranged on one side of a table, with light streaming in across their severe faces from one window - just like a 17th century painting.

[Afalstein]

Being from a dutch family, I have to say... what a wonderfully friendly and approachable board!  And such a spirit of adventure!  These guys are like a bunch of young teenagers.  Heartening to see.

[TheDidYouKnowChannel]

A series full of Dutch camera angles...except during a scene with the Dutch XD

[b.elzebub]

Another detail that might be easy to miss, but is very significant here. Notice how the Dutch are not in some grand palace or opulent hall. They're in the 18th century equivalent of some dude's apartment.
Just to paint the picture of what that must have felt like. Imagine after visiting a bunch of 5 star hotels and huge corporate office buildings and getting shut down everywhere. You arrive at a small apartment with a dozen guys crammed on a couch staring at you, sitting on the equivalent of a folding chair, asking for a couple billion. And they just go: 'Ok. You want cash or transfer?'

[ijunkie]

The Dutch were more than happy to loan the money. They deeply resented the economic rise of Great Britain compared to their own stagnation. America would make a great independent trading partner, as well as a source of income from issuing credit. It was a great risk, but the rewards would be enormous. Indeed it did pay off as Hamilton shepherded through economic reform in the 1790s.

[friendlyjester]

As a dutchman, I compliment this film on the performance of the language. The Dutch in this scene speak proper Dutch.

[Dumpstermuffin]

at least his diplomacy with the dutch went a lot better than his  diplomacy with the french

[evilgrandmaofficial]

This might surprise some of y’all but getting such directness from the Dutch is actually a huge compliment, it’s basically them conveying “I think this is very much worth my time, and time is money so let’s get on with it. “ If they instead would’ve been nice John should’ve been worried because that’s the Dutch way of apologizing for the time talking being wasted before showing you out. As a son of an American father and a Dutch mother this scene is very interesting because it shows both customs so well and how they work the other way around respectively.

[smc]

"A modest sum."
_"A modest man."_
I can think of no greater compliment I would want from anyone in the World.

[snakeySnakeybakey]

"May I remind you that Apple Pie was a Dutch food long before 'as American as Apple pie' was even an expression"

[clod]

There are so many amazing things about this little scene. The shaky camera, empty dark space and ironic Dutch angles to convey Adams’ nervousness. The dark vs light to reference Rembrandt paintings. The static and steadiness, and portrait style capture of the assembly. Adams’ attempt to “read” them and proceed in his best attempt at discreet English style. The Dutch slight smile at the mention of revolution...the quick “How much?” And then, IMO the best part, a couple jabs of wry, sarcastic Dutch humor amongst the solemn gentlemen...

I also love how this show portrayed the various European countries as so different from each other, yet so close by, including shared history. This is the most surprising yet noticeable thing for Americans.

[CATboss]

You hear it in their voice: 'Look man, we don't like the British either...'

[SAVikingSA]

He's not wrong, here in rural NY I can walk about 10 minutes and find the remnants of nearly 400 year old stone walls from the old Dutch farms.

[hadrakir]

I always love how Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson got along well with the French.

But John Adams got on really well with the Dutch- A no nonsense, honest man.

[LordCornwallis]

Probably the most realistic portrayal of Dutch people in a movie or series - ever. The similarities are uncanny.