Trivia: Alfred Hitchcock chose Raymond Burr to portray the villainous Lars Thorwald due to his resemblance of David O. Selznick, a producer Hitchcock hated.
Trivia: When Dr. Flaherty is painting on the beach, his tranquillity is broken by the nearby launch of a military weapon test. The film seen of the launch is stock footage of a U.S. built, back-engineered copy of the V-1 buzzbomb, one of the cutting edge weapons used by the Nazis during World War 2.
Trivia: The Caine's name was derived from the USS Zane, the Navy destroyer on which author Herman Wouk served during World War II.
Trivia: In some instances in the film, such as when Gorobei kills the bandit who was checking the water level with an arrow, the actors were actually shot with real arrows. The actor would simply wear a block of wood under his costume (which you can see if you know what to look for) and an expert archer would actually shoot him.
Trivia: Although the carrier used in the movie was the U.S.S. Oriskany, for the film it was given the fictitious name of U.S.S. Savo. I do not know why that name was chosen or by whom, but it was a very ironic choice. Although many U.S. carriers have been named after famous battles that were American victories (including Oriskany), the Battle of Savo, early in WWII, was one of the worst defeats in the history of the U.S. Navy.
Trivia: During the McCarthy Red Scare, director Elia Kazan decided to name suspected Communists in Hollywood and was severely criticized for doing so. It's widely believed this film was his attempt at vindication by portraying Terry Malloy as a hero who testifies in court against his friends.
