The role of Col. Kranau was offered to Gary Cooper, but he turned it down because he did not want to work with director Josef von Sternberg again.
On a 1931 article written by Robert S. White, he talks about animal actors in Hollywood and he mentions Blackie, the cat owned by Marlene Dietrich in this movie in what would become their second partnership right after Morocco (1930). "Blackie was a stray that wandered into the tightly fenced preserves of Animal Land [an establishment that provides animals for film productions] one evening just about feeding time. Finding the meal was first class, Blackie remained. He proved to be friendly, anxious to please and has become one of the most reliable of all animal actors." The same article reveals that Blackie became the property of Paramount Pictures after the 1930 movie. White continues: "But Blackie was not content to be just a fleeting brand. When put before the cameras in Dishonored (1931), he purred with conscious pride and proceeded to give one of the most remarkable feline performances ever witnessed by an astonished director and company. Blackie was promptly assigned a more important role. He became Marlene Dietrich's pet, and thus carries an extended role through-out the entire production, even winning himself a big-eyed closeup at the end of the picture." Director Josef von Sternberg was so impressed by the cat's acting abilities that he said "That closeup will make this movie worth ten thousand dollars more at the box office. Buy Blackie for the property department and give him a home. I want him for my next picture." Blackie was then given a valuation of U$8000.
This film is part of the Criterion Collection, spine #932.
One of over 700 Paramount Productions, filmed between 1929 and 1949, which were sold to MCA/Universal in 1958 for television distribution, and have been owned and controlled by Universal ever since. It was first telecast in Seattle Wednesday 17 June 1959 on KIRO, in Denver 21 August 1959 on KBTV (Channel 9), in Minneapolis 28 August 1959 on WTCN (Channel 11), in Philadelphia 16 November 1959 on WCAU (Channel 10), and in Los Angeles 8 January 1960 on KNXT (Channel 2). It was released on DVD 6 February 2012 in tandem with Shanghai Express (1932) by Universal Studios Home Entertainment, and has also enjoyed an occasional airing on cable TV on TCM.