Originally intended by ABC as a pilot for a TV series.
The name of the boat, "Tabula Rasa," foreshadows the plot. It literally means "Blank Slate," which often refers to a new beginning.
Slick tells John he has been on the island since his torpedo bomber went down on December 5th, 1945. This is the date of the loss of the famous Flight 19, a formation of five TBM Avenger torpedo bombers, in what became known as the Bermuda Triangle.