Trivia

According to TV Guide, the movie was "one of the first Hollywood films to deal with the plight of Vietnam veterans".

First top-billed / major lead role in a theatrical feature film for actor Henry Winkler.

The scenes where Jack and Carol are hitchhiking on a road alongside giant redwood trees was shot within feet of the future location of George Lucas' Skywalker Ranch.

Meryl Streep auditioned for the role of Carol Bell.

This was the first movie that Harrison Ford was seen in after the sci-fi blockbuster Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977) (released just two days before the release of Smokey and the Bandit (1977) which also starred Sally Field) though the picture was actually filmed before that.