Male actors have often donned drag for successful film roles, among them Lon Chaney in both versions of The Unholy Three (1925 & 1930), Jack Benny in Charley's Aunt (1941), Cary Grant in I was a Male War Bride (1949), Alec Guinness in Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949), Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon in Some Like It Hot (1959), Frankie Avalon and Dwayne Hickman in Ski Party (1965), Robin Williams in Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Terence Stamp, Guy Pearce and Hugo Weaving in The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994), Patrick Swayze, Wesley Snipes and John Leguizamo in To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar (1995), Nathan Lane in The Birdcage (1996).

The same year Dustin Hoffman was Oscar®-nominated for playing a man disguised as a woman to advance his show business career, Julie Andrews was nominated for playing a woman disguised as a man who advances her show business career by posing as a female impersonator in Victor/Victoria (1982). Also the same year, Barbra Streisand masqueraded as a young male scholar in Yentl (1982).

A new special edition DVD of the film includes a deleted scene of Dorothy Michaels being interviewed by film reviewer Gene Shalit.

The movie's theme song, "All of My Life (It Might Be You)" was a radio hit for Stephen Bishop.

A Thai-produced action comedy was at least partly inspired by this film, as well as a parody of Steven Spielberg's hit war movie entitled Saving Private Tootsie (2002), in which a group of Thai kathoey involved in a border dispute are rescued by a platoon of soldiers, who must put aside their prejudices to carry out the mission.