Stella Stevens did not want to do this movie and was nearly suspended by Paramount. Her protests hurt her relationship with the studio. She has stated several times that she refuses to watch this film.
According to "The Book of Lists 2" by Irving Wallace et. al., this was the most widely televised of all Elvis Presley's films.
After making a couple of films with United Artists, namely Follow That Dream and _Kid Galahad_, Elvis Presley returned to Paramount. Although the United Artists films had been well received by the critics, the box office was down on his previous Paramount entries. So, a conscious decision was made to return to the formula of the old Paramount films.
In a scene featuring Elvis and Laurel Goodwin outside the Pirates Den, 2 movie posters can be seen featuring Blue Hawaii - starring Elvis Presley.
In the film Elvis Presley performs his only tango song, "The Walls Have Ears".
The only one of Elvis Presley's feature film to be nominated for a Golden Globe award.
Working titles have included: "A Girl in Every Port," "Welcome Aboard" and "Gumbo Ya-Ya."