When Sol (Waterston) and Robert (Sheen) get involved in gay activism marches, it's Sol who is gung ho and Robert who is wary or "too square" to commit. In real life Martin Sheen has actually been arrested nearly 70 times for his activism and protest efforts.
Being her first experience as a lead actress on a television show, Jane Fonda took acting lessons after noticing she was having a hard time playing a character so sustained in time.
In the season 1, 2 and 3 premiere and finale the episodes open and close with a scene on the beach.
Despite the potentially sensitive dialogue surrounding same-sex marriage, Lily Tomlin said in an interview on National Public Radio's Fresh Air that the most difficult line for her was when she had to denigrate substitute teachers.
It was Series Creator Marta Kauffman's daughter's idea to have Robert (Martin Sheen) and Sol (Sam Waterston) gay and leaving Grace (Jane Fonda) and Frankie (Lily Tomlin) to be together as the starting point to the show.