Anecdotes

Clark Gable was ill during filming, and his head violently shakes in several scenes. It is believed his shaking was caused by his chronic alcoholism and smoking four packs of cigarettes a day, although there were rumors he had Parkinson's disease.

The real submarine captain that Clark Gable's character was based on, Captain Edward L. Beach, was only 23 years old at the time of the events depicted. Edward L. Beach Jr. wrote the book "Run Silent, Run Deep" (1955) as a work of fiction. While without doubt similarities exist between Commander Richardson (Gable) and Beach as a submarine captains, the same can be said of Richardson and all USN submarine captains of that era. But to say that the Richardson character is "based" on Beach is a stretch, especially when one considers that the movie is only very loosely based on the book. BTW, Beach also penned a great non-fiction book - an excellent read - "Salt and Steel" (1999), his reflections on being a submariner.

Although at the time of its release the movie was hailed as a fairly realistic portrayal of a submarine life and warfare in World War II, some controversy also existed since both Clark Gable and Burt Lancaster were much older than real US Navy captains and lieutenants in wartime. During filming, Clark Gable was 56 years old, and Burt Lancaster was 44. According to some sources, the average age of War II sub commanders was their early 30s.

Director Robert Wise observed that while Clark Gable was a highly professional actor, he didn't want to work past 5:00 p.m. because "at this stage in his life, he was tired and wrung out by five."

Frank Gorshin was originally due to test for the role of Petty Officer Ruby but refused to fly to the testing. Instead, he drove and was involved in an accident, leaving him with a fractured skull. He spent four days in a hospital and awoke to find that the role had been given to Don Rickles.