Shirley Temple was tutored in her Chinese dialogue by Bessie Nyi, a UCLA student from Shanghai. When Shirley tried her phrases on the film's extras, they didn't understand her. Her dialogue was in Mandarin, which was appropriate for her character, but the Chinese community of Los Angeles largely spoke Cantonese, and consequently most of the dialogue spoken by the extras in the movie is in Cantonese, which was not spoken in Shanghai, where this film is set.
After filming of this movie was completed, Shirley Temple was given the Pekingese dog that had played her character's pet dog, "Mr. Woo." Temple renamed the dog "Ching-Ching," after her character in the movie.
Colorized version of the film was released on VHS in 1995. Subsequent DVD releases have issued the film only in black-and-white.
New York dateline, November 17, 1938: Composers Galore Say Tune in "Stowaway" was Pirated [Headline]. Plagiarism suits and claims plagued 20th Century-Fox this week, with all parts of the world represented, apparently, in the allegations that the Mack Gordon-Harry Revel tune "Good Night, My Love," which was used in the 1936 Shirley Temple picture "Stowaway" had been pirated wholly or in part. In Argentina, a musical trial was held in a Buenos Aires theater with the audience, admitted on free passes, acting as a jury. Two reels of the picture were exhibited and the song of the claimant, Juan Calabria, and the Gordon-Revel piece were played. The audience found for the plaintiff. Twentieth Century-Fox's legal department, taking the position that the audience-jury was "packed," is moving for a dismissal. Charles McCord, a New York tune smith, is suing for $60,000 damages from 20th Century-Fox, alleging that Gordon and Revel lifted music from a song he wrote as the basis for "Good Night, My Love." Claims have also been received from Europe also. So maybe it isn't surprising that Edwin P. Kilroe, copyright expert of the company's legal staff, said yesterday that he was waiting to hear from the heirs of Verdi and Brahams. Gordon and Revel were to arrive in New York this week from the coast.
Robert Young's car was a Duesenberg.