The cold opening features a reference to the show missing out on 15 of the 16 awards it was nominated for in the 1986 Emmys. During the opening, David and Maddie take a call from David's mother (who has been fitted with an iron lung) and her doctor. The doctor tells David that his mother will pull through from her operation with some encouragement, to which David says "16 nominations! We can't lose!" The screen then cuts abruptly to text reading "This episode is dedicated to the memory of Irma Addison, 1922-1986".
Paul Sorvino and Bruce Willis both appeared in Blake Edwards films in the mid-eighties. Sorvino in A Fine Mess (1986) and Willis in Blind Date (1987) and Sunset (1988)