Screenwriter Wendell Mayes was very disappointed with this film and pinned the blame on director Gower Champion, who had, he claimed, imposed entirely the wrong style on the subject-matter.
This was originally intended as a starring vehicle for Robert Redford and George Segal at 20th Century Fox, as a sequel to The Hot Rock.
Most of character names have been changed from the original novel; only Hermann X's name is unchanged.