Trivia: Disney's first direct-to-video animated sequel. Releasing it direct-to-video was considered something of a gamble at the time, as producers worried it would cheapen the Disney brand. However, the gamble paid off - it sold incredibly well, and went on to become one of the best-selling VHS titles of all time, eventually making back over 50X its budget in profit. After its release, over 50 more direct-to-video animated Disney sequels were produced (if one counts both 2D and CGI movies).
Trivia: Judy Tyler and her husband were both killed in a road accident on July 3, 1957, just three days after production was completed and before its premiere. Elvis Presley was so devastated by her death that he refused to watch the movie.
Trivia: There is no "That's all, Folks!" title card after the fade out. Just "The End" with white letters on a black background.
Trivia: During the filming, Charles Bronson did not speak to Elvis Presley off camera and avoided going near Presley as often as possible.
Trivia: As Finian and Sharon Mc Lonergan make their way across America during the opening credits, one of the recognizable locations they pass is the iconic schoolhouse in Bodega, California, made famous in a memorable scene from Alfred Hitchcock's "The Birds." (00:05:06)
Trivia: Near the end, during their extended nonsense bit about the stolen Beaugard painting, both Chico and Groucho were rapid-fire ad-libbing so heavily that they became irritated with one another. In fact, by the time Groucho ad-libbed, "I'd buy you a parachute if I thought it wouldn't open," he was getting really pissed off at Chico's faster and funnier come-backs. Almost instantly, Chico shot back, "Hey, I already got a pair-uh-shoes!" (which was, again, funnier than Groucho's parachute line). At that point, Groucho snapped and sprang into some improvised physical comedy, falling backwards across the card table and elbowing Chico right in the face, perhaps on purpose. Genuinely shocked from the blow, Chico recoiled wide-eyed, looked toward director Victor Heerman off-camera, and angrily exclaimed, "He's crazy!" (referring to Groucho).
Trivia: Despite having only 17 minutes of screen time, Spencer Tracy received the first of his nine Oscar nominations for his performance as Father Mullin in this film.
Trivia: Hywel Bennett (Duckworth) doesn't have a single line of dialogue in the film.
Trivia: This was the first biographical film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture.
Trivia: Even though George Murphy plays Ronald Reagan's father in the movie, he was only 9 years older than Reagan.
Trivia: The first sound film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture.
Trivia: Jim Henson's daughter, Heather, has a cameo as the girl serving drinks at the Bavarian Festival.
Trivia: At the end of the movie, there is a double wedding at sea with the ship's captain officiating. Most people assume that a ship's captain automatically has that authority. However, in order to officiate at a wedding at sea, the captain also must be a minister, a judge or justice of the peace, or a Notary Public.
Trivia: Angela Lansbury plays Elvis Presley's mother in the movie, even though in real life she's only 10 years older than Presley.