# Common Gaffes in Movies and TV **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 29, 2020, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194 "2020-01-29T22:43:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/121 "2020-01-31T05:28:28Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > I was present at the storming of the Russian White House in 1993. I can assure you that rounds fired from AK-47s do indeed make a “BEOWWWWWW!” sound when they ricochet. They also make a “SHWOOOP!” noise when they pass overhead. You can hear them spinning from the rifling in the gun barrel. > > I think you underestimate the power of a .50 caliber round. An M2 machine gun is a virtual autocannon that can demolish aircraft and light armored vehicles. Thank you for the firsthand info. But I wonder if the bullets were full metal jacket vs just lead, which most non-military application ones are. As for the .50 cal bullet. Powerful yes, but as far as the basic physics of how it acts when it first hits something (assuming a regular full metal jacket), itʻs the same as a .22 short. Bigger bullet, bigger entry hole. What it does as it travels though an object IS different however. But itʻs not like it itʻs shown on TV and movies where papers shred and fly all over the place. If that were true, it should completely shred a paper target, not just just leave a 1/2" hole. Hereʻs a video a guy shooting a .50 cal into a stack of [plates](https://youtu.be/mK9tQcK1I0k?t=187). Nice 1/2" entry hole and they remained in a mostly straight line. This video is a nice comparison between a .[223 vs a .308](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3aw3SolQCo&list=PLf6QHPn6ZVf5yV671Oy3OkDeR7ZUe7uoP&index=1). Again just a bigger entrance hole. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/122 "2020-01-31T05:30:05Z")
[QUOTE=aruvqan;22110042. I had to go down to the cop shop in New London and give a statement about 15 years back. It was nothing like Law and Order or any other show except for Haven - bunch of guys sitting at desks, wandering around with folders of papers, one or two other non police there for various reasons, and really crappy coffee. Quiet, mainly small conversations going on around and keyboard tapping sounds. …[/QUOTE] My cop buddies say that Barney Miller was the most realistic cop show. Really crappy coffee! ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/123 "2020-01-31T06:03:05Z")
> [@lingyi](#): > > Cocking the hammer on a double action revolver or pistol. Yes, it will make the first shot easier fractionally quicker since the trigger pull will be lighter, but may throw off the second shot since more trigger force is required. Not on a DA semi-auto it shouldn’t. If it’s a traditional action (DA/SA) the second shot should also have a cocked hammer. > [@lingyi](#): > > always wondered about this one. On police shows, when someone is shot, they quickly announce “Heʻs dead” or just shake their head. Seems to me youʻd ALWAYS immediately call for an ambulance since people have recovered from supposedly fatal injuries. If it’s a bad guy you’d first immediately cuff the guy when it was safe to do so, even if it appears he was incapacitated. I like how nonchalant officers act on TV after they’ve been in a shooting. They’re not shaking like a leaf, they don’t lose their sidearm to evidence, they write their own report, it’s like it’s a common, everyday occurrence. I’ve been to the aftermath of police shootings. It’s nothing like TV. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/124 "2020-01-31T06:57:09Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > A search turned up these sponsors: > > \*In all his incarnations, The Cisco Kid engendered a lot of collectible memorabilia, though much of it dates to the 1950s. Much of it bore the name of various sponsors, such as Tip-Top Bread paper masks and puzzles, Wrigley’s Cisco Kid Signal Arrowhead, Eddy’s Bread Humming Lariat, Arden Milk black bandana, Dolly Madison Ice Cream plastic reflective mask, Kern’s Bread ‘Triple S Club’ clothing transfer, Butter-Nut Bread portrait photos, Leatherwood Dairy plastic tumblers, Nolde’s Bread store posters, Dr. Swetts Cardboard Clicker Gun, and many other similar products. \* > > I too was born too late to have seen the Kid and Pancho in their original run. ☹ It was many years before I understood the “Oho, Pancho!”/“Oho, Cisco!” reference at the end of a _ **Rocky & Bullwinkle** _ adventure. Well, I was surprised to learn that an early 1950’s TV show wasn’t first-run. Sponsors- My crystal clear (but nonetheless still possibly manufactured) memory is… “Everybody Loves Good **Weber’s Bread**!” Thanks for your response, far more comprehensive than I would have expected. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 7:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/125 "2020-01-31T07:21:12Z")
An EMT (or person with basic first aid training) checking a pulse by putting their thumb on someone’s wrist. You have a pulse point in your thumb, and trying to check a pulse that way will register yours instead. Doing CPR on a non-flat, non-hard surface like a bed results in ineffective CPR. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/126 "2020-01-31T07:24:00Z")
> [@lingyi](#): > > Lasers making any type of sound. Laser beams themselves make no noise, but powerful lasers fired in atmosphere[definitely make a noise.](https://gizmodo.com/pew-pew-what-do-lasers-actually-sound-like-1836009340) Possibly the most accurate laser noise in fiction is therefore the thunder crackling noise produced by the PHOTON MAN cheat code in\* Age of Empires\* ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 7:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/127 "2020-01-31T07:28:16Z")
> [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > Well, I was surprised to learn that an early 1950’s TV show wasn’t first-run. I think I first saw them when I was in high school, which would have been in the early '70s. ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/128 "2020-01-31T07:32:38Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > Not on a DA semi-auto it shouldn’t. If it’s a traditional action (DA/SA) the second shot should also have a cocked hammer. > > If it’s a bad guy you’d first immediately cuff the guy when it was safe to do so, even if it appears he was incapacitated. > > I like how nonchalant officers act on TV after they’ve been in a shooting. They’re not shaking like a leaf, they don’t lose their sidearm to evidence, they write their own report, it’s like it’s a common, everyday occurrence. I’ve been to the aftermath of police shootings. It’s nothing like TV. Ahhh…thank you. Forgot about a double action pistol. Yeah. I get chuckle when on real-life police shows, the cops immediately jump on the suspect even if he/sheʻs shot and theyʻre yelling “Iʻm shot!” and the cops still continue cuffing him. On TV or movies, the suspect is shot and everyone stops moving until someone walks up to them and pronounces their death. Yeah, the bad guys almost always die immediately. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 7:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/129 "2020-01-31T07:47:54Z")
A patient with that very rare blood group AB+ needs a transufion, there’s always a race to find an AB+ donor in time. In the first place, AB+ isn’t all that rare, thare’s quite a few around, and secondly AB+ is called the Universal Recipient, they can take blood from any ABO group fairly safely. ---
**Author:** ![MrAtoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/130 "2020-01-31T13:31:55Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > I like how nonchalant officers act on TV after they’ve been in a shooting. They’re not shaking like a leaf, they don’t lose their sidearm to evidence, they write their own report, it’s like it’s a common, everyday occurrence. I’ve been to the aftermath of police shootings. It’s nothing like TV. This is one more thing that makes _Barney Miller_ the most realistic police show ever broadcast (seriously, several cops have said that). They had two or three episodes in which detectives had to shoot a criminal. All of them were traumatized afterward. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/131 "2020-01-31T13:50:16Z")
> [@FairyChatMom](#): > > As was mentioned - how hard is it to get that kind of info from an advisor?? Not hard at all. _Caring_, OTOH… The the movie [_Sweet Liberty_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweet_Liberty), history professor Alan Alda is having his historical novel about the Battle of Cowpens made into a movie. Screen writer Bob Hoskins and director Saul Rubinek are turning it into, “a steamy tale of lust and betrayal, complete with nudity and distortions of historical fact.” At one point, Alda objects to a really egregious distortion of what happened. “Hey! It says in the contract I’m supposed to be consulted about historical accuracy!” “Okay,” says Rubinek, “What really happened?” Alda explains, then, “Fine. You’ve been consulted,” and goes back to what he was doing. > [@TRC4941](#): > > When walking into a house, no one shuts the door. They just open it, walk in and do whatever they’re going to do next - leaving the door wide open. Our dogs do that all the time. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/132 "2020-01-31T14:42:39Z")
Labor always starts in a stuck elevator, and takes about 20 minutes to deliver a 20 pound, totally clean newborn with no mess in the elevator, and mother and baby walk out totally fine. I cannot begin to tell you what’s wrong with that scenario. ---
**Author:** ![ShadowFacts](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shadowfacts/32/2934_2.png) [@ShadowFacts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShadowFacts)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/133 "2020-01-31T14:59:31Z")
> [@eschrodinger](#): > > I’ve been annoyed by the cup thing, except I have thought of it, and described it, differently. I think it is obvious from how people carry and move covered coffee cups, that the cups are empty. And it may not be a gaffe per se, but it takes me out of the show every time I see someone “drink” from an obviously empty cup. I think it happens far less in movies than in TV shows, so there must be an awareness that it’s better to at least put some liquid in the cups to make the actions more natural. THIS THIS THIS THIS! It’s my biggest pet peeve. JUST PUT SOME FUCKING WATER IN THE CUP. AARRRRRRRGGGHHHHH!!! ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/134 "2020-01-31T15:18:05Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > Military uniforms. Most civilians don’t notice or care, but active duty and vets absolutely do, and it’s generally fairly obvious when they mess it up, which they almost always do. > [@terentii](#): > > The dramatic reenactments in documentaries like the ones they show on the History and H2 channels are the worst offenders. I would be a better technical advisor than the ones they have now. The worst offender is Travel Channel’s _Mysteries at the Museum_. They do a good job of researching the historical events. They do a reasonable job of finding actors who resemble the historical people. But you’re lucky if the clothes match the right decade. Before the 18th Century, you’re lucky if they get the right century. For military stories, they often use high school marching band uniforms. For WW2, they often just use khaki clothes with random bits of metal pinned to the collar. And they often tell stories of the British Army, while showing people wearing U.S.-style chevrons. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/135 "2020-01-31T15:38:48Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > I like how nonchalant officers act on TV after they’ve been in a shooting. They’re not shaking like a leaf, they don’t lose their sidearm to evidence, they write their own report, it’s like it’s a common, everyday occurrence. I’ve been to the aftermath of police shootings. It’s nothing like TV. Danny Reagan has been in about 100 shootings so it’s old hat for him. ---
**Author:** ![minor7flat5](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/minor7flat5/32/258_2.png) [@minor7flat5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minor7flat5)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/136 "2020-01-31T15:55:39Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Everyone knows that hacking is just being able to type fast. To stop hacking you have to type faster. I think this only works if you are sitting in front of one of those special computers that has a built-in projector, to project the screen on your (preferably hooded) face. ---
**Author:** ![Tired\_and\_Cranky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a87d85/32.png) [@Tired\_and\_Cranky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tired_and_Cranky)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/137 "2020-01-31T16:16:57Z")
> [@mbh](#): > > The worst offender is Travel Channel’s _Mysteries at the Museum_. They do a good job of researching the historical events. They do a reasonable job of finding actors who resemble the historical people. But you’re lucky if the clothes match the right decade. Before the 18th Century, you’re lucky if they get the right century. For military stories, they often use high school marching band uniforms. For WW2, they often just use khaki clothes with random bits of metal pinned to the collar. And they often tell stories of the British Army, while showing people wearing U.S.-style chevrons. Budget constraints. My friend was a producer on that show. I spent more on catering for my wedding than they spend producing an episode. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/138 "2020-01-31T16:28:28Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > Regarding #3 - I can honestly say I have NEVER heard this foley in all my decades of watching movies and TV. I looked up “foley” and found it meant a technique used by sound engineers. But, may I ask what you meant when you said, “I have never heard this foley?” Did you mean you have never heard the real sound a handgun makes when it falls onto a hard floor in a TV show or movie? Or did you mean you have never heard someone complain the foley usually employed is not realistic? Of did you possibly mean something different? ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/139 "2020-01-31T17:18:05Z")
> [@Paintcharge](#): > > How do they get tires to squeal on dirt roads? This. Is what I came here to write. Always makes me laugh. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2020, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/140 "2020-01-31T17:50:17Z")
Poker scenes. It often goes like this: Player one: I bet one hundred. (Throws a chip into the pot) Player two: I call your hundred (throws chip into pot) and raise you fifty (throws another chip into the pot) Several mistakes there. 1. String betting. [See here](https://www.888poker.com/magazine/strategy/String-bet-in-poker)for an explanation. 2. Players don’t throw their chips into the pot. They place the chips in the playing area in front of them. That way it’s clear who has bet what amount. Only when the betting is finished do the chips go into the pot. 3. The raise is too low. Every raise must be at least equal to the previous raise. The minimum raise in the scenario above would be another $100. So the scene should go: Player one: “I bet one hundred.” (places chip in front of him) Player two: “Raise. One hundred on top.” or “Raise to two hundred” or “I bet two hundred” (places chips in front of him) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194.md?page=8)