Can an Actor Dig Too Deep?

Roland Joffe, the director of Sun Records for CMT, was giving me my instructions for a scene in Schwab's 5&10. I was the clerk in the record section. http://www.cmt.com/full-episodes/g8jq5m/sun-records-706-union-season-1-ep-101 When Colonel Parker (Billy Gardell) tells me that Eddie Arnold is in town, I was to say, "Eddie Howard?" I thought Eddie Howard was a real singer of the era so I asked Mr. Joffe if I should say it like I was impressed that Howard was in town. He looked at me sort of blankly. Then I asked him if Colonel Parker was a regular at my counter. "Did I know him?" I got my direction. Mr. Joffe said, "you're just hard of hearing. Leave it at that." I found this ticket in a box of stuff from my hometown, Findlay, Ohio. I am justified.