Factual error: There is not a cat in hell's chance that Columbo would be allowed to take charge of the dogs Laurel and Hardy unsupervised and unaccompanied, regardless of his faith in their "deprogramming." These dogs are known to have killed a human being! If they had to be moved, they would be muzzled, attached to a very sturdy chain leash, and each would be led by an armed police officer who would have orders to shoot them if they showed any signs of hostility.
Continuity mistake: Towards the end of the episode when Columbo is about to expose the killer he asks the conductor and his wife to adjourn to the recording studio from the stage. When his wife walks off the stage she has one hairstyle, but when she enters the recording studio she has a completely different hairstyle.
Continuity mistake: Columbo is eating with the commandant of a military academy. Columbo has carrots on his plate, among other things. A few shots later, the carrots have been replaced with beans. The next time the plate is seen, it has carrots on it again. Later on in the same scene, the beans are back. Finally, at the end of the scene, there is a longer shot as the commandant is leaving the table, and where the vegetables were there is now something that looks like meat. (00:36:05 - 00:42:45)
Continuity mistake: At the end, when Columbo is demonstrating on the mannequin, his cigar changes position between shots.
Continuity mistake: Dr. Murcheson is not wearing gloves when he scrapes the women's faces. Then he goes into another room and removes a gray glove from his left hand.
Dead Weight - S1-E4
Character mistake: When Columbo first comes to the general's apartment, the general is showing Columbo a submachinegun. He also shows him a magazine and says it is an "extra clip." A retired general would know the difference between a clip and a magazine; the terms are not interchangeable.
Columbo and the Murder of a Rock Star - S10-E3
Factual error: They talk about Wednesday as day of the murder. On the other hand, we see a speeding ticket with 3-11-91. In 1991, March 11 was a Monday and November 3 was a Sunday, so whichever way the date is written the day is wrong. (01:17:53)
Columbo and the Murder of a Rock Star - S10-E3
Factual error: Champagne corks have a metal cap between the cork and the wire cage. (They can be seen when both Creighton and Columbo open bottles.) When Creighton injects the chloral hydrate into the champagne, he does not have the difficulty he should have getting through the metal. The needle does not come out damaged as it should, and it did not go far enough into the cork to put the liquid into the champagne-it would get lost in the cork itself.
Character mistake: Piloting a helicopter, Leslie ends a radio conversation by saying "Over and out." "Over" means "I'm done talking; please respond." "Out" means "I'm done talking and I'm ending this communication." An experienced pilot would never say "Over and out." They are two different terms.
Character mistake: Columbo drives to a car lot to question salesman Charlie Shoup. Admiring Columbo's Peugeot, the salesman says, "We don't see many of these. What's it got on it? 20,000 miles? 30,000?" When Columbo tells him "100,000," he replies, "Well, I don't care what's on the speedometer." He meant to say "odometer."
Short Fuse - S1-E7
Continuity mistake: In the cable car climax, Roger opens the cable car door to throw out the cigars. Then while he is scrabbling on the floor, and there is dialogue, the doors are shut. Then, at the end, the doors are open again.
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.
Answer: In the show, he was already a Lieutenant. A promotion would put him in the next rank up, which for the L.A.P.D. would be Captain. However, some of a Captain's duties would be overseeing other officers and ensuring they're compliant with policies, regulations, and standards. It would also most likely take him out of the field. This is something Columbo has no desire for as he rarely goes to police HQ's. Nor does he show interest in compliance and standards (for example, not going to his semi-annual evaluation at the firing range). However, he could still be assigned to a higher pay grade based on expertise, which is a form of promotion that does not include rank advancement. This would be going from Lieutenant I to Lieutenant II. I don't believe in the show it's ever started what his pay grade is. Although, in s02e01 (I believe) he mentions making $11K a year. Whether or not this was a true statement on his part, if you could find pay scale information for an LAPD Lieutenant in the 70's, it could give you an idea of his pay grade.
Bishop73