This film was selected to the National Film Registry, Library of Congress, in 1991.
On 28 April 1947 Henry Fonda and Cathy Downs starred in a live radio version of this film, broadcast on the Lux Radio Theatre.
Actress Jeanne Crain was scheduled to play Clementine. Studio head Darryl F. Zanuck ruled against her, writing in a memo that the part was so small, Crain fans might be disappointed by not seeing her in more scenes. That's how contract player Cathy Downs got the part instead.
Henry Fonda's first production after returning from U.S. Navy service in World War II.
Tombstone, Arizona, is not located in Monument Valley. John Ford "placed" it there because Monument Valley is where he liked to film his Westerns.
Director John Ford, who in his youth had known the real Wyatt Earp, claimed the way the OK Corral gunfight was staged in this film was the way it was explained to him by Earp himself, with a few exceptions.
An alternate "preview" version of this film exists. In the 1970s, 20th Century Fox donated some film to the UCLA Film Archives. In 1994, it was discovered that the UCLA print was different from the one being shown on TV. It was about 8 minutes longer with minor variations throughout and a slightly different ending. Both this archival 103 or 104 minute version and the 97 minute release version are included on the Fox DVD released on January 6, 2004.
Reportedly, Lloyd Bacon worked uncredited on this film with Darryl F. Zanuck re-editing this film in deference to preview comment cards.