The second of two episodes of the series written by Robert Pirosh, who had been one of the uncredited contributing writers to the screenplay of The Wizard of Oz (1939), for which series star Buddy Ebsen had originally been cast to play the Scarecrow and then switch roles with Ray Bolger to become the Tin Man, before an allergic reaction to that role's aluminum-dust makeup had caused the role to be recast instead with Jack Haley. The film's soundtrack to this day, however, includes Ebsen's singing voice for the Tin Man in one of the film's most famous songs, "We're Off to See the Wizard."
The house where Todd Ballinger and his mother live is an often used home in Barnaby Jones and especially Cannon. Both shows were Quinn Martin productions. It's easy to tell because of the unique front door entrance way and "oozing" mortar between the bricks.