Trivia: Released during the height of Communist hysteria, the film is a thinly disguised indictment of McCarthyism. The cowardice of the townspeople represents the blacklisting that ruined careers and lives, particularly in Hollywood, all the while supposedly good people were afraid to do the right thing and stand up for those singled out for persecution.
Trivia: Many of the actors in this film were related. Barry Fitzgerald and Arthur Shield were brothers. Charles and James Fitzsimons were Maureen O'Hara's real-life brothers (Fitzsimons was her real surname), and Francis Ford was director John Ford's brother. In the race scene where Maureen O'Hara is in a hay wagon, the four people with her are John Wayne's children. Patrick and Melinda in the wagon with O'Hara, Michael and Toni stand next to the wagon.
Trivia: The film won five Academy Awards, and holds the record for the most wins without being nominated for Best Picture.