Joseph Runningfox, who plays Joe Leaphorn's father, is only 11 years older than actor Zahn McClarnon (Joe Leaphorn).
The First Laugh Ceremony, is a rite of passage in Native Culture, where a baby is considered a real person when they first laugh, and the person who makes the child laugh is in charge of the ceremony.
"The Long Walk" was described as a major event in Navajo History. Between 1863 and 1866, more than 10,000 Navajo (Diné) were forcibly removed to the Bosque Redondo Reservation at Fort Sumner from Fort Defiance in Arizona, in current-day New Mexico. During the Long Walk, the U.S. military marched Navajo (Diné) men, women, and children between 250 to 450 miles, depending on the route they took, they were forced to walk across the desert barefoot, without food or water. Moreover, the Reservation in reality, served more as an internment camp.