When this film was in development (under the title 'Class Pophecy') the studio suggested Evelyn Venable for the lead role of Wanda. Hal Mohr, the director, rejected the casting choice, despite the fact that Mohr and Venable were husband and wife. He later stated that he didn't want her to be in the film (his first as a director in many years) in case it flopped and damaged her career.
This film was intended to be the first of many movie musicals to be made by Universal Pictures, best known at the time for their monster movies (Frankenstein, Dracula, The Mummy, etc.). When it failed to recoup its budget, Universal abandoned the musical genre until Deanna Durbin signed a contract with the studio.
This film's advertising campaign promoted it as being from "The NEW Universal Pictures." This was part of an effort to revive the lagging reputation of the studio, which was seriously on the skids at the time. This film flopped, but within a few years, Universal signed Deanna Durbin, then launched Abbott and Costello, and once again saw its fortunes soar.
The original release version of this film included a "prologue" featuring studio chairman Carl Laemmle appearing in front of a curtain, touting this as the first release of "the new Universal Pictures," and promising "more to come." Audiences were apparently unimpressed, since this was a box office flop.
Cudgy Wallace bets Norman Crocker $2 that he won't dance with Wanda at the graduation dance. In 2020 dollars this would amount to approximately $26.