The 23 Aug 1965 LAT announced The Night of the Grizzly as actor Clint Walker’s first film for Paramount Pictures Corporation. The screenplay was based on his original concept. Although the 6 Oct 1965 DV revealed the project’s original title as Clementine, songwriters Jay Livingston and Ray Evans realized that their love theme, “Clemmy,” bore too close a resemblance to another of their movie themes, “Tammy,” and requested changes to the title and the name of the female protagonist, resulting in the song, “Angela.”
       Principal photography began 4 Oct 1965, as noted in the 8 Oct 1965 DV. A news item in the 21 Sep 1965 DV stated that Olivia de Havilland was offered a role, but a broken ankle prevented her participation. The 22 Oct 1965 DV included actor Mike Ruppert among the cast. Several days into filming, the 11 Oct 1965 LAT reported that Clint Walker accidentally lacerated one of his feet with an ax, requiring him to walk with a cane off-camera until the twelve stitches were removed. The following week, the 19 Oct 1965 DV^ stated that director of photography Loyal Griggs contracted an intestinal virus, and was temporarily replaced by Daniel Fapp. On 12 Nov 1965, DV reported that actor Leo Gordon had recently completed his role, possibly indicating the end of photography. However, filming resumed two months later, as noted in the 11 Jan 1966 DV, when child actress Victoria Meyerink was called back to Paramount for additional scenes.
       The 24 Mar 1966 DV announced that Walker would attend the world premiere at the Plaza Theatre in Palm Springs, CA, on 30 Mar 1966. Proceeds benefitted United Charities. The picture opened in early May 1966 in Los Angeles, CA, and on 22 Jun 1966 in New York City, double-billed with the comedy, The Last of the Secret Agents (1966, see entry). Reviews were tepid, several of which emphasized the clichéd nature of the plot and dialogue. According to the 21 Dec 1965 LAT, Paramount president Howard Koch was sufficiently satisfied with the film to offer Walker another starring role. Audience response was also more positive, earning the picture a total of $105,000 from twenty-six locations during its opening week in Los Angeles.