Continuity mistake: During the final minute of this episode, the sound of a roaring wind can be heard. Two close-ups of a statue and a close-up of a boy in the street show swirling dust and leaves. In the long shots, there is no evidence of wind. No dust is blowing and all the trees are completely still.
Factual error: The wife of a former Civil War general who is being encouraged to run for Governor tells Ben Cartwright, "He's used to being in The Spotlight." This series is set in the 1880s and the word "spotlight" did not enter the English language until 1904.
Continuity mistake: An influenza epidemic is exacerbated by a very cold windstorm. The wind is obviously created by a wind machine. In all the outdoor scenes, dust and leaves are blowing in the foreground but the trees and bushes in the background are motionless.
Continuity mistake: April Christopher is asleep in an upstairs bedroom at the Ponderosa. After a noise awakens her, she gets out of bed, puts on a robe and leaves the room. As she is going downstairs, she is suddenly also wearing a pair of blue slippers.
Blind Hunch - S13-E9
Continuity mistake: Jamie and a blind man are riding side by side on horseback along a trail. Upon hearing the sound of a bird, the blind man identifies it as a black-tailed magpie. Jamie looks up to see the bird. The next shot, obviously from stock footage, shows a bird sitting on a branch of a tree with no leaves. In the scenes with Jamie and the blind man, every tree is fully grown with leaves and there are no bare branches.
Other mistake: The episode opens with Ben Cartwright ascending an outdoor staircase to a land office. The sound of a howling wind can be heard but no dust or leaves are blowing and all the surrounding bushes and trees are motionless.
Factual error: As the boy dies, his hand opens and coins roll out. Included are Washington Quarters (first made 1932), Jefferson Nickels (1938), and Roosevelt Dimes (1946). (00:15:45)
Other mistake: Several people, believing a treasure is hidden inside the Trails End saloon, are tearing the wooden building apart. To stop them, Joe pulls out his gun and fires a shot into the ceiling. Even though he held the gun at a 75-degree angle in front of him, the falling dust and plaster land directly on top of his head.
The Sound of Sadness - S14-E10
Visible crew/equipment: In the foreground, a teakettle on a stove starts whistling. In the background, Jonathan May lights a lantern and walks toward the stove. At the exact moment he lights the lantern, a studio light is turned on and its reflection is visible on the kettle. In addition, the light illuminates a side of the kettle which should be in shadow because of the position of the lantern.
Audio problem: Early in the morning, as Joe enters the living room, the grandfather clock chimes three times but the time shown on the clock is 2:57.
The Hunter - S14-E15
Visible crew/equipment: Joe, wearing a green jacket, is seen from behind as he talks to a rancher. A studio light is obviously being used. A shadow, probably of a stagehand, passes across Joe's jacket.
