Leslie Howard and Humphrey Bogart had played the same roles in the stage version. Warner Bros. wanted to put Howard in the film but replace Bogart with Edward G. Robinson. Howard insisted on Bogart, sending a telegram to Jack L. Warner which read "Insist Bogart play Mantee; no Bogart, no deal." Bogart would later name his second child with Lauren Bacall Leslie, in honor of Howard, the man who gave him his first big break.
Apache Beer was prominently featured in the movie. There is an advertisement in the background, and it is on the table when Alan Squier is eating his dinner. Apache Beer was introduced by the Phoenix-based Arizona Brewing Company in 1934 and was available in Arizona and parts of New Mexico and Texas. The brand was discontinued in 1943. Apache Beer items are very rare and valued by collectors. Thousands of dollars have been paid for cans in very good condition.
Humphrey Bogart got a freelance contract for three weeks at $750 a week; only after the movie was a success did he get a 26-week contract.
A sign in the restaurant says "Tipping is Un-American. Keep Your Change". The opposition to tipping in America began in the 1890s and continued through the 1930s. Before the Civil War, tipping was uncommon in the U.S. By the late 1800s the custom was imported from Europe and caused Americans to worry that tipping would create a master-servant relationship between the customer and the worker and undermine the ability for workers to earn a fair, agreed-upon wage. It was considered "un-American" because it resembled European aristocratic and class-conscious customs. Some workers resented being given tips because they associated tips with low-skilled or unskilled labor (e.g., the shoe shine boy vs. a restaurant owner), but the largest argument against tipping was about concerns for fair wages and workers' rights. The argument against tipping aimed to support workers' rights to a fair wage provided by employers. In essence, tip-dominated jobs, such as restaurant work, allows employers to divert the responsibility to pay their workers to the customers and their whims. In the early 1900s, editorials against tipping appeared in major newspapers, and in 1904, the Anti-Tipping Society of America was formed in Georgia. Its 100,000 members signed pledges not to tip anyone for a year. Leagues of traveling salesmen opposed the tip, as did most labor unions. In 1909, Washington became the first of six states to pass an anti-tipping law, but tipping persisted. The anti-tipping laws were rarely enforced, and when they were, they did not hold up in court. By 1926, every anti-tipping law had been repealed.
The character of Duke Mantee was mainly inspired by bank robber John Dillinger. Humphrey Bogart happened to closely resemble the gangster, and he studied film footage of Dillinger to perfect his mannerisms.