At the time of its release, it was felt that the film's failure was largely due to a sour 'mean streak' running through the plot, which essentially involved two generations of sisters using ruthless wiles to manipulate the men at the story's core. Particularly distasteful at the time was Constance Bennett's attempts to woo patriarch Walter Brennan away from her own sister, Dorothy Gish.
Centennial Summer hasn't been available for viewing since the mid-1980s, when, after many years of obscurity, it turned up for one showing on the SFM Holiday Network, and briefly on the Disney Channel. Since that time, the film has not been televised and, as of 2017, has never been released in any home video format.
Linda Darnell sings her own vocals in "Up With the Lark."
Although big band singer Kay St. Germain Wells sang for Linda Darnell in both "Hangover Square" (1945) and "My Darling Clementine" (1946), she did not sing for Miss Darnell in this film as several sources wrongly assume. A classically trained soprano sings for Miss Darnell this time.