Post-production was finished in 1984, but the film wasn't released until three years later. MGM shelved the film after poor test screenings, only granting it a limited release in 1987.
Robert Altman has conceded that the film did not work but has consistently defended and praised the ensemble cast's work.
Adapted from a single issue of the National Lampoon magazine, 1982's "Utterly Monstrous, Mind-Roasting Summer of O.C. and Stiggs".
The first Robert Altman movie in around three years that had not been a filmed adaptation of a play.
British Film Institute stated that this film was "probably [director Robert] Altman's least successful film".