ट्रिविया

Director Milos Forman with screenwriters Jaroslav Papousek and Ivan Passer were in the small town of Vrchabi, trying to concentrate on a screenplay after their success with Lásky jedné plavovlásky (1965). One evening, on a lark, they went to a real firemen's ball in the town. What they saw there was so remarkable, they abandoned the script they were working on and began writing this film.

Few professional actors were used for this picture. Many were residents of the small town of Vrchlabi, Czech Republic where the film was shot, including many of the actual volunteer firemen of the town.

Milos Forman was offered to direct One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) after producer Michael Douglas saw this film and was impressed by his work.

In spite of many claims the film was banned in Czechoslovakia by the communists in power at the time, it was not. It actually sold over 750,000 tickets in the country and was shown on state-controlled television in 1969.

The last film director Milos Forman made in his native Czechoslovakia before moving to the United States.