One of Joan Cusack's conditions for starring in this show was that it had to be produced in Chicago so she would not have to leave her family.
Nearly half of the episodes produced were never shown in the USA, plus ABC destroyed continuity by broadcasting them out of sequence. Four first season episodes were shelved in case they needed new programming during a potential writers strike which never materialized, and the network abruptly halted production two weeks into the second season, leaving an additional six episodes unaired.
The show's title was an inside joke. The production team couldn't come up with a name for the series, although it came close to being named "Sweet Home Chicago," which was the theme song in the original version of the pilot. Calling it simply "Joan" seemed dicey since Bette (2000), Emeril (2000), The Michael Richards Show (2000) and Geena (2000) had all recently tanked in the ratings and NBC had Kristin (2001) slated to premiere on their schedule. With time running out to get a name in the press, they utilized the complete and oft-asked question as the show's title: "What about Joan?"
Kyle Chandler lived in the Chicago area during the four years that Demain à la une (1996) was on the air, but when that was canceled in 2000, he sold his townhouse and relocated to Los Angeles. Not long after, Chandler landed a leading role in this Chicago sitcom and found himself renting a Chicago apartment and commuting back and forth to his new home in L.A.
Joan Cusack was pregnant during the filming of the pilot, but they disguised it with baggy clothing.