In his 1994 book "We're ready for you, Mr. Grodin : behind the scenes at talk shows, movies, and elsewhere", Charles Grodin reveals that Marlo Thomas asked him to direct her father, Danny Thomas's screen test for this show. This was because the network saw him as a nightclub comic rather than an actor, and preferred to cast Jack Klugman instead. They prepared for a couple of weeks and after shooting the screen test, Grodin and Marlo Thomas worked through the night to edit it. Grodin never asked for any salary, but Danny repaid him several years later by helping him raise money to produce a friend's play off-Broadway.