The film was the first produced under a 13-film co-production treaty between
Allied Artists and five television stations owned by
ABC. It was the first movie made by Troy Donahue following the end of his contract with
Warner Bros. It was originally called
Red on Red. Hot off her success for her performance in
The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming Andrea Dromm was recruited by the American Broadcasting Company to host a television special about the
surfing craze called
Hit the Surf and to play a female secret agent in the lead role of
ABC Films first production. She knew the director Marshall Stone from their work together in
National Airlines and
Clairol "Summer Girl" television commercials. Dromm had to learn motorcycle riding and
scuba diving for the film, but her underwater shots were doubled. Dromm was nervous about scuba diving and what she felt were unsafe conditions; she said that Troy Donahue got into some trouble underwater due to problems with his
diving regulator. Dromm never made another film. The film was overshadowed by 20th Century Fox's other
1967 female
spy films;
Fathom with
Raquel Welch and
Caprice with
Doris Day. ==Critical reaction==