The film disappeared after its initial release. It was considered "lost" until 2009, when a clean print was discovered in a warehouse. It gained cult status after being shown on TCM Underground, and received more exposure when it was featured on Mystery Science Theater 3000 (2017).
A sequel, "More Carnival Magic" was planned, and advertised at the end of the film. The film did so badly at the box office that the sequel plans were scrapped.
This film uses sound effects from classic video arcade games. A scene with an EKG uses a sound from Tron (1982). Another scene uses a sound from Centipede (1980).
According to the documentary "Blood & Flesh: The Reel Life and Ghastly Death of Al Adamson", Trudi the Chimp, who played Alexander The Great, was too old to be used in the film safely. She injured several members of the cast and crew, including head-butting the script supervisor, causing a concussion that put the script supervisor in the hospital for several days.