# Is "Whatever Happened to Gloomy Gus of the Chicago Bears?" by Robert Coover a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Whatever Happened to Gloomy Gus of the Chicago Bears? by Robert Coover (Linden Press / Simon & Schuster, 1987) is identified by: First printing identified by a full number line including 1 and a priced dust jacket. True first in book form is the 1987 Linden Press / Simon & Schuster edition (ISBN 0671638130), a revised version of the story first published in American Review in 1975.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First printing identified by a full number line including 1 and a priced dust jacket
- Short novel issued in publisher's cloth
- An uncorrected proof exists and precedes the published book
- Publisher imprint reads Linden Press / Simon & Schuster
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Robert Coover |
| Publisher | Linden Press / Simon & Schuster |
| Year | 1987 |
| True first | American edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First printing identified by a full number line including 1 and a priced dust jacket |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
First printing identified by a full number line including 1 and a priced dust jacket. Short novel issued in publisher's cloth. An uncorrected proof exists and precedes the published book.

## Is this the true first?
True first in book form is the 1987 Linden Press / Simon & Schuster edition (ISBN 0671638130), a revised version of the story first published in American Review in 1975.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
None notable.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Whatever Happened to Gloomy Gus of the Chicago Bears?* by Robert Coover a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/whatever-happened-to-gloomy-gus-of-the-chicago-bears
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.