Dolores Hart's last movie before she retired from acting. Although considered one of Hollywood's most gifted young actresses, she was unhappy with life in Tinseltown and would soon give up the screen to become a Roman Catholic nun. Although fan magazines predicted she would return to show business, she stayed true to her calling and currently serves as Reverend Mother Dolores Hart, prioress of a Connecticut abbey--as well as a voting member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences®.
The uniforms of both the cockpit crew (white service caps) and cabin crew (conservative blue dresses) closely resemble the actual uniforms worn by Pan-Am Airlines pilots and stewardesses. The fictional airline Polar Atlantic is an homage to Pan American.
In the opening title sequence, the camera moves through New York International Airport. Following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy nine months after the release of this film, the airport would be named for the late president. The Pan Am Worldport from which the fictional Polar Atlantic flight boards was demolished in 2014, Roger Moore can be seen arriving in this terminal at the beginning of Live and Let Die (1973). The TWA Flight Center also prominently featured in the title sequence was restored to its 1960's glory as the centerpiece of the retro TWA Hotel and opened to the public July, 2019.
Bergie was right about the picture with Walter at the restaurant being too expensive: the $6 it cost at the time is the equivalent of over $56 in 2022.
Mariette Hartley was originally cast as Hilda Bergstrom and rehearsed with the cast for two weeks before being diagnosed with hepatitis. Hartley was later retested after undergoing weeks of painful treatment and it was discovered that she was misdiagnosed. However, the role was recast with Lois Nettleton.