This episode marked the first time George Savalas was identified by his first and last name for his acting credit. Before this he was credited by only his middle name of "Demosthenes" in order to prevent any confusion with his older brother Telly.
Originally two hours, it was split into 2 one-hour episodes for syndication.
At the beginning of the second part, the cruise ship in the background behind Kojak and the informer is the QE2.