The person posing as Reese's mother in the pictures on the wall is Zooey Deschanel's real-life mother, Mary Jo Deschanel. She also played Ed Harris's wife in The Right Stuff (1983).
The kitten playing Spike was found in an animal shelter and saved from being put to sleep. It was adopted by a producer's brother.
In this film, Zooey Deschanel played the daughter of a reclusive author, much like J.D. Salinger. Zooey Deschanel was named after the character in the J.D. Salinger novel, "Franny and Zooey".
The song that Corbit (Will Ferrell) sings at the open mike night is "I Can't Tell You Why" by The Eagles.