Goofs

Two goofs in one scene: When Columbo first meets Nelson Brenner in the hallway outside the lecture room, he hands a photo to Brenner who looks at it and then hands it back to Columbo. In the next shot, as Brenner walks away, he again hands the photo back to Columbo. Then Columbo and Brenner go into a nearby room where Brenner pulls out a small address-book type notepad and writes in it. In the next shot, the small notebook in Brenner's hands is replaced with a full-sized pile of papers.

Brenner pours wine for Columbo and himself while they're in his den near the end of the episode. He fills the glasses about 1/4 full. The angle of the shot then changes and both glasses are almost completely full.

When Columbo opens and closes the blinds in Brenner's office to demonstrate the sound heard on tape, he leaves the slats closed in the down position (the position one would normally close the slats). The scene changes to show Columbo walking away from the window and the slats are closed in the up position (top of the slats facing up and outward).

When Columbo goes to Brenner's house, the two are seated on the patio. Brenner reaches out and grabs a pitcher of orange juice on the table in front of him. On the reverse shot, Brenner's hands are nowhere near the the pitcher.

When Columbo goes to the hot dog stand, there is a salt shaker, sugar, and a ceramic cup on the counter. When the shot is shown from behind Columbo, the ceramic cup is empty. When the shot shows the front of Columbo, the cup is filled with wooden utensils.

When Columbo checks with the photo booth regarding identifying photos, he is shown color Polaroid prints from a pack-film camera and is told they have the negatives as well. The only Polaroid packs which produce a printable negative are in B&W (and the negatives he is shown are indeed B&W). Also, when they see Brenner's face more clearly in the second (color) photo, this isn't possible because a Polaroid can't take two pictures in such rapid succession.

Columbo focuses on a photograph of Brenner in front of a jet aircraft. Brenner refers to the aircraft as a "T-33 Silver Star." The aircraft is properly called a "T-33 Shooting Star". However, the T-33 was manufactured under license in Canada and while the Canadian version was known as the "Silver Star", it was also designated as the CT-133. Either way, Brenner has mixed Canadian and US designations.

The Director's ID card looks like something out of a kid's wallet.

Multiple times, Nelson Brenner claims he flew a T-33 "Silver Star" in the Korean War. The T-33 is called the Shooting Star, whereas the Silver Star is the exclusively Canadian variant of the T-33, designated as the CT-133.

Columbo fails to prove means, motive, or method for Brenner's murder of Geronimo. All Columbo has done is break Brenner's alibi, for a murder Columbo has never produced any proof that Brenner committed in the first place.

However, Columbo will be able to discuss with the "Big Man" Brenner's involvement in his fellow "operator's" murder and the Agency will investigate the rest.

Nelson Brenner asks for a bottle of Beaujolais to be served to Columbo. The bottle served is not a Beaujolais but a Bordeaux. The shapes of each bottle are very different and cannot be confused.

Brenner takes the cloth off the pitcher of juice twice .

Colombo is talking to Brenner at the gas station. The attendant tells Columbo he has to move because there are other customers waiting. When the camera pulls back, you can see there are no cars waiting.

Toward the end in Brenner's Den when Brenner pours Beaujolais wine from a Bordeaux bottle after setting the bottle down the v in the linen napkin wrapping the bottle is opposite Columbo but from the front view immediately following the V is facing Colombo.

The silver box of Fine Cigars in Brenner's Den it's kind of small when he first picks it up. But on the front view with the Box open it's about the size of a shoe box.

When Brenner is recording the speech that will be delivered later (and which is designed to establish his whereabouts for his alibi), he first turns the clock to coordinate the time. Just after starting to speak, he gets up to close the blinds (which later will be the decisive clue for Columbo). As he continues to speak, there is no chiming of the clock; however, when he plays the tape back, the chiming can be heard during the same speech passage. The fact that the closing of the blinds can later be heard on the tape confirms that he did not do a second take of the recording, but that it was still the same he had started with.

At 28.09 you can see an older woman in very bright yellow pants walking past on Columbo's side of the road. 3 seconds later you can see the same extra walking by on the other side of a major intersection. That gal can move.