This was the first Warner Brothers film to begin with Max Steiner's famous fanfare, which had a bombastic beginning and, by design, no end, as it was meant to transition into the main title of whichever picture it introduced.
Claudette Colbert fought with director Anatole Litvak throughout most of the filming. Her main problem was with Litvak's cinematographer, Charles Lang. Colbert, famous for demanding that when she be primarily photographed from the left side, didn't feel that Lang was photographing her according to her wishes, and demanded that he be fired. Litvak refused, setting off almost constant battling between the two that lasted the entire length of shooting. Ironically, co-star Charles Boyer's similar penchant for wanting to be photographed from the right side, didn't get as much attention, but also caused a similar problem.
The musical production of "Tovarich" opened at the Broadway Theater in New York City on March 18, 1963 and ran for 264 performances. The show starred Jean-Pierre Aumont and Vivien Leigh who won the 1963 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical.
Screen rights were bought for Marion Davies to star as Grand Duchess Tatiana, but Warners ultimately went with Claudette Colbert, a major reason Davies left the studio.
"Tovarich" is the Russian word for "comrade".