This episode was inspired by writers Carl Kleinschmitt and Dale McRaven's own experiences writing for The Joey Bishop Show (1961). Joey Bishop could be very hard on the writers at times and they often added their insulting comments about Joey in the margins of their scripts. They would white them out before Bishop saw them.
The set for Alan's office is different from previous episodes in order to accommodate the wall unit, which is an important part of the plot.
In 'who owes who what' Buddy states that Mel married Alan's sister. In this episode Mel says that he is allowed at Alan's house (whenever he is not home) because it is also his sister's house. This would mean that Mel and Alan married each other's sisters.