Ah, Golden Girls . It was the golden age of television! A show so beloved, it remains popular today.
But that doesn’t mean the show didn’t have its faults. In addition to a behind-the-scenes feud between Betty White and Bea Arthur, continuity wasn’t the show’s strong point.
See what we mean with these 19 mistakes fans probably didn’t notice!
1. The layout of the house
Since TV sets are just that — sets — they don’t always make sense. This was why the entrances of the house didn’t always match up to what viewers saw on the inside.
For instance, it appeared that Rose’s bedroom was located in the middle of the backyard.
The show’s assistant art director Michael Hynes once admitted , “We don’t know where the garage is.” Regardless, this apparently led to Blanche and Dorothy’s bedrooms.
2. Rose’s education
This continuity error was pretty big. Rose, played by the beloved Betty White, would talk about being valedictorian of her high school and even going to college.
Yet, a later storyline showed her enrolling in a GED class, taught by Dorothy.
3. The family trees
For a show that’s big on family, it’s odd that the show couldn’t keep the members straight!
Dorothy was known for her son, Michael; Sophia for her sister, Angela; and Blanche for her daughter, Rebecca.
But over the course of the show, this family tree kept changing.
Blanche went from having one daughter to two, along with three sons who were never shown except one. Then, Rose went from having five children to six!
4. Rose’s boyfriend
When Rose dated Miles, it was revealed that he was in the witness protection program and hadn’t had any contact with his family.
However, his daughter came to visit in Season Five for an episode where she didn’t approve of Rose.
5. Stan’s location
Stan is Dorothy’s ex-husband. When their daughter, Kate, got married in Maui in Season One, Dorthory said that Stan lives there with his new wife.
But only a few episodes later, it’s revealed that he lives in Miami!
6. Dorothy and Stan’s first date
Speaking of Stan, Dorothy couldn’t keep her story straight on how their first date happened.
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There were at least five different stories: he rescued her from being stood up at prom, she agreed to go out with him because she liked his car, and so on.
7. Rose’s fear of hospitals
While no one likes hospitals, Rose made it pretty clear that she’s very against them. In one episode, she told Sophia that she doesn’t like being around all the germs.
So why, then, did she volunteer in a hospital?
8. Rose’s cat allergy
In the first season, we learned the Girls’ origin stories of how they all came to live with one another. For Rose, she moved into the house since her previous rental didn’t allow cats.
But in the Season Four episode, “High Anxiety”, it’s said that her allergy prevented her from having a cat.
So, Rose, which is it?! We would’ve loved to see her living with her adorable kitty, Mr. Peepers.
9. Rose’s stunt double
Remember when Rose had a dance-off and started doing cartwheels? While it would be incredible to see her do that, the show made it clear it wasn’t her when her stunt double was shown, clear as day.
10. The changing rooms
In case you didn’t know, the inside of the Girls’ house was previously used as a set from the Patty Duke show, It Takes Two .
But as the rooms changed over the seasons, so did the bathrooms. While they shared bathrooms in some seasons, they had their own in others.
11. Phil’s funeral
Throughout the show, there are many reminders that Sophia is from Brooklyn.
This made it very odd that the funeral for Sophia’s son, Phil, was held in Miami. Neither he nor his family lived there.
12. Blanche’s children
There was something very puzzling about Blanche’s family. During the first two seasons, she named her six kids: Biff, Doug, Janet, Matthew, Rebecca, and Skippy.
But by the third season, two of those children were given the ax when Blanche said she only has four kids.
13. Dorothy’s phobia
During the show, we learned that Dorothy has a huge fear of flying. Meanwhile, Rose hated public speaking and Blanche didn’t want to lose her looks. Yet, during Season Two, Dorothy had no problem flying despite her phobia.
14. Blanche’s middle name
Seeing as how she was rarely honest about her age, it comes as no surprise that her middle name kept changing. At first, she said it was Marie. But later on, it changed to Elizabeth.
15. Rose’s last name
Speaking of names, another error took place with Rose’s last name.
When she said she was adopted by the “Nylund” family, this made no sense. That’s because her maiden name is Lindström and Nylund is her married name.
16. Rose’s family
She often implies that her family members are dumb and odd like her. Yet, when viewers meet her relatives, they all seem normal and very bright.
It’s only her cousin Sven that acts very similar to her.
17. Where in the world is Miles?
In season 6’s “There Goes The Bride,” Rose explains at the beginning of the episode that Miles is currently traveling across Europe with some students. Yet in the episode that immediately precedes this one, we learn that Miles has been put back into Witness Protection.
18. The timeline just doesn’t make sense.
Back in season 2’s “And Then There Was One,” the father arrives to pick up baby Emily and proclaims that his wife had triplets the night before. Yet the Emily we see in the baby stroller is barely six-months-old — how could his wife possibly be having triplets?
19. How is Stan so much older than Dorothy?
During the pilot episode of the series, Dorothy mentions to Rose that her ex-husband, Stan, is a 65-year-old man — she also says that they were together in high school. But if Dorothy is in her 50s, shouldn’t Stan be the same age give or take a couple of years?
20. Does Dorothy have a second job?
In season 2’s “Bedtime Story,” the girls all share Sophia’s bed after a blistering cold front knocks out the heat one Saturday night. Upset that the other women are keeping her up, Dorothy exclaims that she has to work early in the morning.
Diehard fans will no doubt already know that Dorothy works as a substitute teacher.
So where would she have been going on a Sunday morning when all the schools are closed? Did she have a second job that we, the audience, weren’t privy to?
21. What is the real reason that Dorothy married Stan?
Various times throughout the series it’s mentioned that Dorothy married Stan because she got pregnant — and that they stayed married for 38 years. However, Dorothy’s son Michael is said to only be 23/30 (depending on the episode) and her daughter is nowhere near 38.
22. If it’s raining so hard, why isn’t anyone wet?
In the season 3 episode “My Brother, My Father,” Dorothy walks into the house and begins talking about how badly it’s raining outside. She then shakes off her coat, only there isn’t a single drop of rain on it. Shortly afterward, Stan comes in shaking an umbrella that’s also bone dry.
23. What happened to the pool?
Back in season 2’s “Empty Nests” episode, Dorothy becomes angry with Oliver and brings up how he once threw up in the pool at a New Year’s Eve party thrown at Blanche’s house. Blanche has always lived in the same house and there’s never once been a pool there.
