 Though the race of the characters is not specified in the script of the play, in the original Broadway production (1964–65), the "Owl" was played by white actor Alan Alda and the "Pussycat" by black actress/singer Diana Sands, and many subsequent productions followed this precedent; the film version omitted the characters' interracial relationship.An instant hit, the movie grossed $23,681,338 at the domestic box office, making it the 12th highest-grossing film of 1970.The movie also grossed $11,645,000 in rentals.