Shortly after this show premiered, Sean Maher, the actor playing Alice's closeted husband, also revealed to Entertainment Weekly Magazine that he was a gay man in his real life and during his 14-year career.
Most of the main cast members signed a "nudity clause," that allowed the production to shoot nude footage of them that would be utilized in international broadcasts and DVD releases of the episodes.
NBC canceled the show after only three episodes due to poor ratings.
Jeff Hephner was originally cast as Nick Dalton, but after his first table read he was replaced by Eddie Cibrian.
When production wrapped on October 10, 2011, show creator Chad Hodge and star Laura Benanti both confirmed that they had finished seven episodes, including the pilot. Benanti further stated that the seventh episode has two endings, one of which is more final to the series.
Hugh M. Hefner performed a voice-over narration during the pilot episode, but no such narration was recorded for the other episodes. A young version of Hefner was featured as a character in the show, but was only ever seen from behind. Show creator Chad Hodge said this was the result of a conscious decision to feature Hefner in the series but not give him a regular role, which the real-life Hefner approved of because, according to Hodge, "He didn't want to make it his story."
The Pearl character (portrayed by Jenifer Lewis) was based on a real-life Playboy Club seamstress named Betty.
The costumes in The Playboy Club were designed by Isis Mussenden. She was not able to find any original Playboy Bunny uniforms, so she created her designs based on photos and consultations with Hugh M. Hefner. Each of the five female leads received two suits, each of which cost $3,000 and took about 10 hours to make. Each suit included a built-in bra, French cuffs with Playboy cuff links, satin ears and 3-inch heels. After the costumes were designed, Hefner had claimed they were not cut high enough on the leg, but Mussenden assured him the height was correct based on photos of Hefner with real-life bunnies.
The Doris Hall character was based on Gloria Steinem, a reporter who wrote an expose on the real life Playboy Club of the 1960s called I Was A Playboy Bunny.
Eddie Cibrian (Nick Dalton) was injured by a 200 lb door falling across his right leg while taping this episode. It put a gash in his heel and he was taken to an area hospital.
This episode has two endings, one of which was described as "more final to the series" by the show's star Laura Benanti.
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