Visible crew/equipment: The Great Santini makes a vase of flowers appear on a table. Before he holds up a cloth to conceal the vase as it appears, the tips of the flowers can be seen beyond the far edge of the table. As he pulls the cloth away, there is a quick glimpse of the hand of the crew member who put the flowers on the table. (00:11:00)
Dead Weight - S1-E4
Continuity mistake: Helen Stewart and her mother are boating in the harbor and are about to pass a small island. A Marine colonel goes to the nearby home of a retired general to inform him that he is under investigation for cost overruns on a government contract, Fearing that the colonel will implicate him, the general shoots and kills him near a window. Helen is looking toward the home and witnesses the shooting. She tells her mother, "We have to go back." The boat is in the same position it was in five minutes earlier.
Make Me a Perfect Murder - S7-E3
Continuity mistake: When Kay retrieves the gun from the elevator ceiling, they switch shots several time looking up at the ceiling and down from the ceiling. In one shot looking up, the barrel and grip of the gun are over the edge of the ceiling tile. In the next down shot, just the barrel is near the edge and the grip is inches away. Back to an up shot and the gun returns to barrel and grip over the edge.
Continuity mistake: The witness dunks the strawberry in the white sauce while talking. We cut to a view in front of her, and the dialog continues but suddenly the strawberry is half-eaten. When did she take that bite? (00:41:40)
Continuity mistake: When Columbo is eating his chili in the booth at the diner, whilst talking to the daughter of the murderer, his bowl of chili moves. It is right in front of him at one point but is then away from him. And it now contains less food.
Factual error: In the series, Columbo does not carry a gun, and in several episodes it is mentioned that he doesn't like guns and/or that he doesn't know very much about them. In the real world, all LAPD officers must carry guns, and they must re-qualify with them at the range six times each year. Also, due to the very nature of their work, they are knowledgeable about numerous types, makes, and models of guns.
Short Fuse - S1-E7
Continuity mistake: When Buckner's car leaves the chemical plant, it's a stretch limo with three bench seats. When it explodes on the mountain road a few scenes later, it's only a two-seat limo. (Buckner, who was initially in the distant rear seat, is suddenly close enough to reach up and take the cigar box the chauffeur hands him from the front seat. The entire middle section of the limo has disappeared.) (00:13:40 - 00:15:30)
Factual error: To make a call, Mr. Bremer enters a seven-digit number on a push-button telephone. The first three keys he punches are 1, 2 and 4. No telephone number in the United States begins with a 1.
Factual error: Rakman Habib's driver's license shows that he lives in "Beverly Hills CA 91605." That is the ZIP code for North Hollywood, not Beverly Hills.
Continuity mistake: When Columbo and the woman have finished flying in the light aircraft, she taxis the aircraft back and shuts down the engine. There isn't much to see behind the aircraft at this point, but when Columbo and the woman get out (in the immediate next shot) there are two rather large buildings/hangars which have magically appeared right behind the aircraft. Plus the aircraft propeller has changed to a more horizontal position.
Character mistake: The policeman gets the bag for the ransom from the wife of the kidnapped person, grabs it with bare fingers and puts the money into it - without gloves, too. (00:23:30)
Plot hole: When Columbo tries to explain the position of the cars and the angle of the shot, he gets to the version when they come to the conclusion that if the car behind the other car park one way than the first car wouldn't block the light, so the shooter could see the victim. Colombo says it is possible, but in that case it wouldn't explain the angle of the shot. However there could have been 2 shooters which would instantly answers the question, and Columbo wouldn't come to the conclusion that it was a mistaken identity case. (00:43:00)
Deliberate mistake: Beth shoots Bryce three times in the chest, and he falls face down on the floor. She then drags his body across the floor, also face down, to in front of the sliding door, but there is no sign of blood anywhere.
Suggested correction: In the early Seventies, no television show used blood effects. They were too expensive and would severely restrict potential audiences as television channels were notoriously conservative in those days. This is a creative and technical decision, not a mistake.
Dead Weight - S1-E4
Plot hole: How did the revolver get into the museum after the murder? Falk said he did not see it in the packing crate.
Factual error: Near the end of the episode, Jackie Cooper fires a bullet into his hotel room from the balcony using a revolver fitted with a silencer. Hayward also uses a revolver with a silencer to kill Stone. This is a classic Hollywood error, as silencers do not work on revolvers (unless noticeably modified), due to the gap between the barrel and the cylinder. They also don't make gunshots nearly as quiet as shown.
Continuity mistake: The insurance agent has a complete hot dog in his hand while Columbo talks. When we cut to a view over his shoulder, Columbo's sentence continues but the agent is suddenly chewing. When did he take that bite? (00:36:20)
Character mistake: In the performances, Benedict is not conducting; he is waving his arms around.
Factual error: When Mrs. Williams takes Columbo flying, she does some aerobatics. Neither of them is wearing a seatbelt. No pilot would do that.
Character mistake: A valet tells Columbo that automobiles belonging to Sauri embassy personnel are repaired at a service station two blocks away. Later, when Columbo is speaking with Hassan Salah, he says, "I know your cars are taken to a service station three blocks away."
Character mistake: During a rehearsal, conductor Alex Benedict instructs the orchestra to play "quasi un fantasia." Columbo asks Benedict's wife Janice what those words mean. She tells him, "It's Latin for 'like a fantasy." The words are Italian, not Latin.
