In an interview with one of the episode's directors, they said Betty got very candid in character about the death of her husband. The director said "Betty's character was candid and told the girls how he died. It was clear she was talking about Allen Ludden."
This was originally written to be shot and broadcast live. NBC just had success with a live broadcast of Gimme A Break and had decided to have an entire night of live broadcasts but eventually got cold feet and canceled the live broadcast but the script remained.
According to Betty White's 1995 book Here We Go Again, her mother Tess was taken to the hospital on November 9, 1985. She died 2 days later on November 11, the first day of the read through of the script for this episode, which means this episode was taped on November 15, 1985.
While the girls were listing everything Sophia ate, Rose says Fettuccine Alfredo. This is not an Italian dish; it is strictly American. However, Sophia had eaten other non-Italian foods such as Milk Duds.
Sophia says that she always wanted to act. She gets her wish several times later in the series. It also may be a tongue-in-cheek reference to Estelle Getty's portrayal of Sophia as her most notable role.