The play that "Gil Weston" is appearing in is "Prescription: Murder." It shares the title of an actual play from 1962 written by William Levinson and Richard Link, notable for introducing their most famous creation, Lieutenant Columbo. However, the scene from the Gil Weston play shown in the film bears no similarity to anything in the original; nor are the reviews Weston reads similar. In the original play, Lt. Columbo was portrayed by the famous character actor Thomas Mitchell in what would be his last acting role.
Originally aired on February 17, 1979, star Hal Holbrook's 54th birthday.
The play is being performed at the Morgan Theatre. It was established in Santa Monica in 1946. The old location at 5th Street and Ocean Park Boulevard was destroyed by fire. It reopened on Pico Blvd. In 1979, it was renamed the Morgan-Wixson Theatre after the death of one its members, Mel Wixson.