This film was a hit at the box office, earning MGM a profit of $739,000 (equivalent to about $13.5M in 2022) according to studio records.
First of two films pairing Hedy Lamarr and William Powell; the other film is The Heavenly Body (1944).
The story includes reference to 1,000,000 Francs. Basic research shows the French Franc was worth about 25-1 against the USD, or about $40,000. At that time, the average house price in the US was $4,100, and the average income was around $500.
The car David drives out into the country is a 1938 Jensen H-Type. Only 14 were made, and only one had left-hand drive. It had a Lincoln V-12 engine. At auction in 2020, in excellent condition, this car could be worth well over $200,000.
Both William Powell and Basil Rathbone have starred as private detective Philo Vance. Rathbone played him in The Bishop Murder Case (1929), while Powell played him in Die Stimme aus dem Jenseits (1929), The Greene Murder Case (1929), The Benson Murder Case (1930), and The Kennel Murder Case (1933), and the "Murder Will Out" segment of Paramount on Parade (1930).