This episode was originally intended to be used on One Day at a Time (1975), with Ann Romano as the victim.
This was originally an hour- long episode, broken into two for syndication.
In an interview, David Dukes revealed that at the point where the audience realized this was going to be a serious rape attempt (when he started getting rough with Edith on the couch), they "growled" at him. Reportedly, Dukes had subsequently received constant death threats from viewers about the character he portrayed.
David Dukes appears on the TV Series "One Day At A Time" Season 2 Episode 11 "The Maestro". Dukes plays a love interest for Ann Romano. However, the attempted sexual assault on Edith was supposed to be on "One Day At A Time" with Ann Romano which means Dukes would have been recast.
When Edith comes bursting into the Stivics' kitchen and directly into Archie's arms, Gloria quickly zips up the back of Edith's dress. It's done as the camera cuts up close, and can be easily missed. Because no one at that point knew what had happened to Edith, it's possible Gloria was thinking she was simply helping her mother to be properly dressed.