The boutique where Mary and Rhoda shop is named Shot Down in Ecuador, Junior
Ed Asner and Peter Strauss have a scene together. They later co-starred with Nick Nolte in the miniseries "Rich Man, Poor Man."
The ages of Mary and Stephen are revealed to be 33 and 25 respectively. In reality, Mary Tyler Moore (Mary) was 36 and Peter Strauss (Stephen) was 26 at the time this episode originally aired.
Rhoda (Valerie Harper) makes an oblique abortion reference: Noticing a plant she gave Mary is sprouting, she remarks that if another plant starts to blossom from it, she's "not taking it for a pruning!".
The hysterically uninterested salesgirl in the store that Mary asks for help in is played by actress Elyane Heilveil. Heilveil would go on to play Nancy Lawerence in the first season of the ABC drama Family but would ultimately be replaced by Meredith Baxter Birney in that shows second season.