The Divers are based on real-life couple Gerald and Sara Murphy, friends and patrons of the famous, including the author of this story, F. Scott Fitzgerald. Poet Archibald Macleish once said of the Murphys that "there was a shine to life wherever they were".
Several actors and directors were attached to this over the years. George Cukor was going to helm with Elizabeth Taylor starring opposite Glenn Ford. Cukor left the project and John Frankenheimer came on board. He wanted Christopher Plummer but he wasn't considered a big enough box-office draw. Warren Beatty was also in the running but he was thought to be too young. Paul Newman, Montgomery Clift, Dirk Bogarde and Richard Burton were also sought before Jason Robards was hired. Had Burton and Taylor been cast, this would have pre-dated the massive media circus that was Cleopatra (1963).
The title, "Tender Is the Night," comes from John Keats' 1819 poem, "Ode to a Nightingale."
The film cast includes four Oscar winners: Jennifer Jones, Jason Robards, Joan Fontaine and Paul Lukas.