It seems likely the character of Joey Frost is loosely based on Stewie Unger, the youngest-ever WSOP champ in the 1980s, also blessed with a terrific memory and ability to read opponents.
A number of times the "three mile limit" is discussed in this episode. This is referring to the limit of (in this instance) the jurisdiction of the New York City Police Department, the New York City Sheriff's Office and the New York State Police to investigate crimes committed off the coast of New York City and inside US territorial waters. At any given point off the coast of the United States a state's different law enforcement agencies have jurisdiction over crimes committed within three miles of the coast. Beyond this three mile point are US territorial waters which extend out to 12 miles off the coast and within those the Coast Guard has jurisdiction. Any crime committed within the three mile mark, either in the water or on board a vessel flying the flag of the United States, falls under the jurisdiction of the local state authorities (which exact authority is determined by the nature of the crime); a crime committed on board a vessel flying the flag of a foreign nation within the three mile mark falls under the jurisdiction of federal law enforcement, which agency depends on the crime. Crimes like kidnapping, rape and murder are investigated by the FBI; unlawful transport of and/or smuggling of alcohol, firearms, tobacco or explosives is investigated by the ATF; unlawful transport of and/or smuggling of drugs by the DEA; unlawful transport of unregistered aliens, crimes related to espionage, or if any of the previously mentioned crimes are connected to terrorism or threaten national security they are investigated by the Department of Homeland Security. Any crimes committed beyond the three mile point but within the 12 mile point fall under the jurisdiction of the United States Coast Guard, and serious crimes like kidnapping, rape and murder are specifically investigated by the Coast Guard Investigative Service, a federal law enforcement agency that investigates crimes where the United States Coast Guard has jurisdiction and crimes committed by and against members of the USCG.
Jack ROSENCRANTZ and GIL Costello are characters who are suspects in the murder of Benton Williams. In Shakespeare's "Hamlet," the characters ROSENCRANTZ and GUILdenstern are minor characters hired to murder Hamlet while aboard a ship at sea. The names and circumstance in this episode cannot be a coincidence on the part of the episode's writers/creators.
The board game the child is playing when he blows on the dice is The Mad Magazine Game. The object is to be the first player to lose all their money.
This episode reunites Vincent D'Onofrio and Lou Taylor Pucci. They had worked together on the film "Thumbsucker," where they played father and son.