The release weekend for this movie coincided with the date from the first line of the song that inspired it: "It was the 3rd of June, another sleepy, dusty Delta day"
The actual Tallahachie bridge was destroyed by fire in 1972 and replaced with a modern one. Filming was done at a similar bridge nearby. Both bridges have plaques noting their respective events.
Second collaboration between Robby Benson and Glynnis O'Connor. Susan e Jeremy (1973) was the first. Also seen together in the 1977 teleplay "Our Town"
Screenwriter Herman Raucher was paid $250,000 by the Dell Publishing Company to author a tie-in paperback novel, which was ultimately deemed a colossal financial disaster.