Robert Mitchum was bemused by Robert De Niro's habit of remaining in character all day, and nicknamed the young Method actor "Kid Monroe". Mitchum also recalled that Ray Milland gave anyone with hair a hard time.
F. Scott Fitzgerald died of a heart attack before finishing the novel. It was based on the life of the late head of production at MGM, Irving Thalberg. Fitzgerald's old friend and Princeton classmate Edmund Wilson edited the uncompleted manuscript for publication. It was published, in its incomplete form, in 1941, in a volume that also included "The Great Gatsby" and a selection of short stories.
This is part of a cycle of movies made during the mid to late 1970s about Hollywood's Golden Age, including the Silent Film era. Other movies include: Fedora (1978), Inserts (1975), Valentino (1977), Nickelodeon (1976), The Wild Party (1975), Hearts of the West (1975), The Day of the Locust (1975), The World's Greatest Lover (1977), Gable and Lombard (1976), Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood (1976), Goodbye, Norma Jean (1976), Bud and Lou (1978), and W.C. Fields and Me (1976). Each film was a financial failure.
Anjelica Huston tried out for the role of Kathleen, but producer Sam Spiegel preferred Susan Sarandon.