According to Van Dyke, guest star Robert Vaughan was taken aback and slightly frustrated at the cast's loose and playful attitude toward rehearsals and last minute script changes.
Rob's remark about his eight sinus cavities is a reference to the then-popular commercials for Dristan decongestant.
Rob's joking trip itinerary ends at "Grossinger's in time for Hanukkah". In the 1950s and '60s the Catskill Mountains resorts were so popular with New York City Jews that these resorts were called the 'Borscht Belt'. The stereotypical notion was that every Jewish family in NYC vacationed in the Catskills at least once a year.
Robert Vaughn and Richard Deacon were both in "The Young Philadelphians."
The chippy dishes that Rob hates are Desert Rose by Franciscan. The pattern was hugely popular in the '60s and '70, but the ceramic does chip and crack easily. Everybody would have sympathized.