Only one person actually gets killed with the chainsaw: Sally's brother.

During the big chase scene Marilyn Burns was running so slow that Gunnar Hansen would stop and cut tree branches so he wouldn't over run her.

Leatherface is based on the killer Edward Gein, who in reality wore his victims faces as masks. He also did some really freaky things with the rest of their bodies, including: a belt made of nipples, chairs with human bones for its legs, a skull top for a soup bowl, etc. The police also found a half eaten heart on a plate, and a nude, decapitated, and gutted body hanging upside down on a meathook in his barn.

A then-unknown John Larroquette provided the film's narration. He also narrated the film's 2003 re-make.

Many praise the movie for being well acted with such a low budget. Two performers that are singled out are Marilyn Burns and Paul Partain, who play Sally and Franklyn. In the scenes where they squabble, the acting is quite impressive. But was it really acting? The two performers, in reality, could not stand each other.

During the big chase scene, Gunnar Hanson tripped and the chainsaw flew up in the air and landed inches from his head. When they get to the house you can see him turn around to check where he is running. This is joked about on the DVD commentary.

The scene where Leatherface kills the first of the teenagers had to be re-shot several times because Gunnar Hansen kept apologizing to the actor after he'd hit him.

During the dinner scene towards the end of the film, when Leatherface cuts Sally's (Marilyn Burns) finger, he actually does cut her finger. The protective cover was taken off without warning Burns, and her reaction on screen is real. Submitted by wizard_of_gore

The director of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre wanted a PG rating for his movie but he didn't get it.

During the making of the film, the chainsaw they used started up on the first pull every time Gunnar Hanson used it.

The name Leatherface is only said once or twice during the movie.