When Jake and Bill arrive in Jodie, there is a service station named Fannin. "Fannin" is one of the names used by the infamous "Man in Black" from the Dark Tower series, also written by Stephen King.
In the novel, Mimi was white. She was changed to black in order to highlight the racial tensions of the period, something that Stephen King thought was important while writing the book in order to avoid idealizing the period too much.
The Modoc Motel where Jake and Bill stay right at the start of the episode is an old motel on Hockley Road near the village of Hockley, Ontario which also serves as the motel in CBC's "Schitt's Creek".
Jake (James Franco) mockingly calls Billy "James Dean." Franco played Dean in a TV biopic.
This episode takes place from November 1, 1960 to June 1962 and in 2016.