Corrected entry: Roy Orbison in the 50s is playing barre chords on his guitar which were not invented then.
Corrected entry: What is a lowered (only the front) 1960's VW Beetle, with American bumpers and a "roof-rack", doing in a military airbase in Germany in 1952?
Correction: The scene was 1953 and the VW was a 1955, identical to the 1953 model. I know because I was the Picture Car Coordinator for the movie.
Corrected entry: When Johnny Cash is first on the street outside the Memphis recording studios the camera pans across an early 1950s Ford station wagon, the rear wheels are polished American Racing Torq Thrust II's, these came out about 5 years ago.
Correction: That car is a 1955 Ford Ranchwagon. When the owner showed up to the set, I noticed the wheels were wrong. I got double stick tape and put some old hubcaps on the car that would be appropriate, then left for my office to continue arranging for cars for the upcoming days. By the time they shot the scene, the tape had loosened and no one caught it. You can see the old hubcap leaning against the tire. I know because I was the Picture Car Coordinator for the movie.
Corrected entry: How come at a time when Johnny Cash doesn't have enough money to pay his telephone bill, he's able to buy a house?
Correction: Because paying a telephone bill requires money "in hand," which he didn't have. Whereas buying a house is generally done with a loan; which many a bank may have been happy to give to the famous Johnny Cash.
Corrected entry: In the scene where John (Cash) is going up to June's house after he has been in a 'funk' for about a year or so, he says, "Hi Carlene" and then she runs in the house to tell her mother John is at the door. She is also referred to as "Carlene" throughout the movie. Carlene was born as Rebecca Carlene Carter and wasn't referred to as Carlene until her late 20's when her music career started. Until then it was always Rebecca.
Correction: This film is a dramatization of the life of Johnny Cash, not a documentary. This isn't even really artistic license, let alone a movie mistake.
Corrected entry: During the scene late in the film where Johnny is looking through fan mail, the camera comes in close on several of the return addresses to show that they are mostly from inmates. One has a return address for "State Penn.(sic), Austin, TX 78756". The state penitentiary in Texas is located in Huntsville, 45 miles north of Houston, not in Austin. And the zip code provided is that of an incredibly exclusive neighborhood in Austin called West Lake Hills (home of Sandra Bullock and Michael Dell); not exactly the place even a fictional state prison would be located.
Correction: Not really a mistake since real addresses are rarily, if ever used.
Correction: Barre chords have been around for centuries.
On top of that, even putting aside earlier versions of the guitar or other string instruments like the lute, the acoustic guitar was invented in 1850. The idea that not a single guitar player would have played a barre chord in a span of over 100 years is highly unlikely.
Phaneron ★