On 9 May 1961, DV announced that director Harry Keller had acquired motion picture rights to Fallen Angel, a 1952 novel written by Howard Fast under the pseudonym “Walter Ericson.” However, an 11 Jun 1965 DV article suggested that Fast did not officially sign the rights over to Keller until 1963, and although originally planned as an independent project, a 28 Mar 1963 NYT item reported the involvement of Universal Pictures. Later that year, the 13 Oct 1963 NYT stated that the title had been changed to Mirage, as DV noted another film called Falling Angel had been released by Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corp. in 1945 (see entry).
       According to a 17 Dec 1963 DV brief, Keller initially sought Rock Hudson for the leading role, but Keller eventually withdrew from directing duties on Mirage to direct Hudson in Universal’s romantic comedy Send Me No Flowers (1964, see entry). The following year, the 21 Sep 1964 DV named Edward Dmytryk as the new director, with Gregory Peck already signed to star. Items in the 3 Nov 1964 DV stated that Glenn Corbett had been cast as Peck’s onscreen son, while the 15 Dec 1964 edition claimed Alvin Wise also appeared in a role. A 31 Mar 1965 Var brief stated that Mirage marked the motion picture debut of actor Luis Espinosa, Jr.
       Pre-production began in the fall of 1964, as indicated by a 21 Sep 1964 LAT article reporting Keller’s departure for the East Coast. A 30 Oct 1964 DV production chart listed a start date of 24 Oct 1964 in New York City. According to the 4 Nov 1964 Var, the unit was scheduled to spend approximately two weeks filming in and around the city, including Battery Park and Central Park. An LAT article published eight days later also named Columbus Circle and the Central Park Zoo among the featured locations, and detailed the process by which Peck was repeatedly filmed riding alone on a 5th Avenue bus between 34th and 72nd Streets. Subway scenes were shot at midnight between the 125th Street and Bowling Green stations. Additional measures were taken to detract onlookers by disguising the production vans and actors’ trailers.
       On 12 Nov 1964, DV announced that the production had relocated to California and resumed filming at the studio’s Universal City sound stages. A DV news story one week later reported that the basement equipment room of Universal’s newly built fourteen-story MCA Tower served as the background for a fight scene between Peck, Walter Matthau, and George Kennedy. After another month on the studio backlot, the 23 Dec 1964 DV reported that principal photography was scheduled to conclude 23 or 24 Dec 1964.
       Mirage opened in 300 theaters across the U.S. on 26 May 1965, including twenty-eight venues in the New York City area. According to articles in the 5 May and 12 May 1965 Var, the New York showcase launched Universal’s new “Premiere Theatre” exhibition pattern, and paired the film with a featurette titled “Casey at the Met(s).” The 22 May 1965 LAT noted that the Los Angeles, CA, engagement was scheduled to begin the following week, on 2 Jun 1965.
       According to the 11 Jun 1965 DV article, Howard Fast filed a lawsuit against Universal for breaking their agreement to credit the source material to his real name onscreen, seeking $25,000 in damages and an injunction against the film’s release.
       Offscreen cast names come from a Call Bureau Cast Service list dated 1 Feb 1965.