Barbara Feldon and Pamela Austin participated only in the first five episodes. George Schlatter wanted to hire Feldon as a series regular, but this was precluded from the beginning, as Schlatter knew she would have to return to her role as Agent 99 in "Get Smart."
The outrageous pace and content of the series' Mod, Mod World segment was inspired by Stanley Kramer's It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963), and the pilot episode actually uses a go-go arrangement of Ernest Gold's main theme from that film as underscoring.
Even though the cast of regulars was not yet set, the pilot episode introduced several themes that would continue for the remainder of the series' run, including Mod, Mod World, the cocktail party, Judy Carne's tattooed go-go dancer, Ruth Buzzi's Gladys character, Arte Johnson's German soldier ("vehhhry interesting..."), and Henry Gibson's poetry readings.
This pilot had a news skit supposedly 20 years in the future (9/9/87); as it turned out it would be the same year and month that Dan Rowan would pass (9/22/87).
The episode won 2 Emmy Awards for Outstanding Individual in Electronic Production - film editing and Outstanding Musical or Variety Program.