During a television interview at the time just after this movie was released, Chuck Berry said he handled his own wardrobe, and it was all authentic. He still had an entire closet full of the suits he wore while touring during the time frame portrayed in the movie, so what he wears in the movie is what he wore on stage during the 1950s.
Chuck Berry, Jerry Lee Lewis and Screamin' Jay Hawkins all guest star in the movie in special stage performances. The three singers figured prominently in the birth of rock 'n' roll during the 1950s.
While the real Alan Freed was still working in Cleveland, Ohio at radio station WJW (850 AM), he was one of the organizers of a five-act show called "The Moondog Coronation Ball" on March 21, 1952 at the Cleveland Arena. This event is known as the first rock and roll concert. Crowds attended in numbers far beyond the arena's capacity, and the concert was shut down early due to overcrowding and a near-riot. This was long before Freed was accused of inciting a riot at the Boston Arena in 1958 that the movie depicts, which eventually led to him being fired from WINS (1010 AM) in New York City, and driving him into bankruptcy.
First movie that featured the character of real-life radio disc jockey Alan Freed. The character would appear in a number of rock 'n' roll history biopics and movies over the years including Cadillac Records (2008), Who Do You Love (2008), Ray (2004) [Ray Charles], La Bamba (1987) [Ritchie Valens], and Great Balls of Fire! (1989) [Jerry Lee Lewis].