Orson Welles always claimed that this picture was not the biography of one specific individual, but a composite of characters from that era in America. Though universally recognized as based on the life of William Randolph Hearst, there were also elements in the story that applied to the life of Chicago utilities magnate Samuel Insull (1859-1938).
Orson Welles chipped his anklebone halfway through production and had to direct for 2 weeks from a wheelchair. When he was called upon to stand up onscreen, he wore metal braces. The injury occurred in the scene where Kane chases Gettys down the stairs and Welles tripped.
Orson Welles later said that he regretted the way Marion Davies was portrayed as "Susan Alexander" and that Davies was a wonderful woman.
Orson Welles reportedly wore out a print of The Power and the Glory while studying its story construction, a technique its screenwriter Preston Sturges referred to as "narratige."
Orson Welles thought it an advantage that Dorothy Comingore (Susan) was pregnant when shooting began. It would reassure the studio brass that he intended to finish on schedule. Welles hid her advancing condition by shooting her behind tables or by obscuring her body in flowing dressing gowns.
Orson Welles tried to buy out the screen credit of co-writer Herman J. Mankiewicz. Welles actually paid him several thousand dollars. However, the Writers Guild got wind of this and said that was not permitted. But when Welles tried to get his money back, Manky had already spent it.
Orson Welles was just 25 years old when he directed this, his first feature.
Orson Welles' deal with RKO gave him unprecedented freedom for a first-time director. He was to write, produce, direct and act in two pictures for the company, with complete autonomy in the hiring of actors, technicians and final cut. Studio boss George Schaefer had to greenlight the project and could veto any request for extra finance over the modest $500,000 budget (which eventually would be exceeded by $200,000), but no one other than Welles was allowed to view the rushes.
Carole Lombard was offered the lead role in a proposed melodrama, "Smiler with a Knife," to be directed by a newcomer at RKO named Orson Welles. She turned it down, opting to return to screwball comedy in Mr. & Mrs. Smith. Welles refused to make Smiler without her. After briefly considering Lucille Ball for the lead role, he began work on Citizen Kane.
William Randolph Hearst was infuriated by this movie, obviously based on his life. According to an essay written for the New York Review of Books by Gore Vidal "Rosebud" was Hearst's name for long-time mistress Marion Davies' clitoris. But screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz insisted that he took the name from a bicycle he owned as a child.
William Randolph Hearst was so angered by the film that he accused Orson Welles of being a Communist in order to keep the film from being released.
Judy Holliday tested for the role of Susan Alexander (under her real name Judy Tuvim).
Gregg Toland's cinematography credit appears alongside Orson Welles directing credit in the final title card of the film.
Gregg Toland's equipment included the first extensive use of coated lenses for shooting a feature film.
Alan Ladd makes his appearance as one of the reporters at the end of the film (the one "with the pipe," as indicated in the credits list), discussing Kane and "Rosebud" just before the furnace finale.
Agnes Moorehead's film debut.
George Coulouris, who played Kane's legal guardian, posed for two hours for a papier-maché statue of himself. He later petitioned the Screen Actors' Guild for payment for those two hours and won his case.
After production wrapped, William Randolph Hearst forbade any advertisement of the film in any of his newspapers - or indeed any other RKO movies - and offered to buy the negative from studio head George Schaefer with a view to destroying it. Fortunately Orson Welles had already previewed the film to influential industry figures to rave reviews, so it was granted a limited theatrical release. Critics from non-Hearst newspapers fell over themselves praising the film. The film itself was not reviewed in any Hearst newspaper until the mid-1970s, when the film critic for the "Los Angeles Herald-Examiner" finally reviewed it.
Although Marion Davies is frequently held up as the model for Susan Alexander Kane, the character was more likely to have been influenced by opera-singer-turned-film-actress Hope Hampton and opera-singer-turned-botanical-garden-founder Madama Ganna Walska.
Apparently, holding less of a grudge than anyone might think, William Randolph Hearst's son said in 1985 that he had enjoyed the film and that Welles could visit his grandfather's San Simeon estate anytime he pleased - "on my tab," a noble feat as Welles died that year.