The character of Colonel H. Norman Schwarzkopf (Peter Donat) was the father of General H. Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr., the commander of the coalition forces during the Gulf War (1990 to 1991). He also founded the New Jersey State Police, and was a narrator of the radio series "Gangbusters".
When the twenty-month-old Lindbergh baby appeared on the 1932 cover of TIME Magazine, he became the youngest cover subject in the magazine's history.
Rather curiously, a brief scene is included in which people in Germany (by implication, supporters of the Third Reich and the German-American Bund) are seen raising money for Bruno Hauptmann's defense fund. In reality, Charles Lindbergh was notorious for his early support for Adolf Hitler, although, as World War II neared, he repudiated these views.
The film cast includes three Oscar winners: Anthony Hopkins, Dean Jagger and Martin Balsam; and two Oscar nominees: Walter Pidgeon and Michael O'Keefe.
The film takes place from March 1, 1932 to April 3, 1936.