Factual error: In the 19th Street Parade, it shows the Budweiser Clydesdales pulling their famous wagon. Even though this movie is set in 1897, Budweiser did not start using Clydesdales until April 1933 when the sons gave their father, August Busch Sr., the owner of Budweiser, a 6 team team of Clydesdales to celebrate the end of Prohibition.
Continuity mistake: When Cornelius meets the girl in the red dress and they dance and sing outdoors on the street, her dress is dragging on the pavement and the hem is clearly filthy. The next scene they arrive at the restaurant and her dress is clean and pressed.
Factual error: In the original theatrical release print of this film, set in the 1890s, there is an overhead shot of a train travelling through the countryside from Yonkers to New York City. As the camera follows the train, an overturned 1950s-60s automobile in a ditch beside the track comes into view. The offending vehicle has been edited out of the video release.
Factual error: Hello Dolly is set in 1890. Barnaby makes several references to seeing "the stuffed whale at Barnum's museum" several times. But by 1890, Barnum's museums had burned down (three times, I think) he'd gone into politics, become a lecture speaker and finally had become partners with James Bailey to create Barnum and Bailey's Circus. (They even have a banner in the parade on 14th Street.) I doubt they still had the museum operating under his name.
Continuity mistake: When Dolly first sits down at the table at the Harmonia Gardens, she picks up her napkin twice. (01:56:45)
Factual error: In the opening scene of the film, when the sepia toned picture of Old New York turns fluidly into a moving image, you can see a window air conditioner in the top left hand corner of the screen.
Continuity mistake: When Dolly is purchasing the ticket to Yonkers, she gives the money twice to the cashier.
Continuity mistake: During the "Elegance" number, Minnie Fay is seen handing her money to the woman selling pretzels twice.
Factual error: Someone forgot to cover the air conditioners in the opening number of "Hello, Dolly!" which is set before the turn of the 20th century. (00:02:59)
Continuity mistake: During "Put on Your Sunday Clothes" as the men dance downhill the camera sweeps across the lake and a roadway with cars is visible. (00:33:07)
Answer: Beets are served with the dinner, as a side dish to the turkey and dumplings. Dolly tries repeatedly to serve them to Horace ("you salt your beets, I'll salt mine"), who repeatedly proclaims his distaste for them. There is no specific mention of cranberry sauce. But they'd be easy to confuse, as both are red and have a consistency not too dissimilar from one another.
Michael Albert