Luann by Greg Evans and Karen Evans for October 07, 2015

I hope he’s the right shade of gray… not a shady type, that is.

Just like that—-walk in and take over. What is TJ gonna say when he finds out? Will Gunther see Mr. Gray in a whole new light? And does Mr. Gray have a first name?

Just happened to be strolling by, eh? Creepy…

He’ll make a few requests “they can’t refuse.”

Don’t underestimate Gunther’s mother’s friend, Luann’s parents.

Wait a minute….did he say Las VEGAS?? “I’ll make some calls for you,” could cost a LOT in the end (favours, etc.)

….and he’s got squinty eyes…..

He showed his interest when he was at supper with Quill, Gunther and his mom. It’s no surprise that he’d wander on down to see what’s goin on.

Huh. I agree with those of you who think he’s the kind of guy who knows a guy. Mrs Berger never saw this side of him before.

And yes, he has a first name. It’s spelled “Mr.”, and is pronounced as if it rhymes with “sister”.

The innuendo is strong with this one.

Cool…I called it

But can they afford him?

“Someday, and that day may never come, I’ll call upon you to do a service for me. "

Get mine with double pepperoni and extra cheese Mr. Gray!

And the plot thickens…..

O-oh! the plasterers gonna get cement overshoes!!!

Frank better get rid of his snotty attitude. He has not a clue what he is doing so he can’t afford to turn down someone that knows what they are doing.

Mister Gray is proud today, all his Roses are in bloom.

Perhaps THIS would be a GOOD Time to Ask the Stranger, Allegedly Known as “Mr. Gray,” WHY He No Longer “Manages a Club in Vegas,” You Trusting SAPS, Uh I MEAN, DeGroots.

People who say, “I’ll make some calls for you” ought to be taken very seriously. They get things done.

“Silent Gray”“If It Ain’t Fixed, You’re Broke”“More Action, Less Words”“One Less Money Pit In Pitts”“The Quicker Fixer Upper”“The Pros And Connections”“Just A Vegas Description”“Got A Fixin’ To Fix”“Think You’ll Like The Way It Looks…I Guarantee It!”“First Impressions”“A Meeting, Then A Meeting”Repairing The Repairers’or“The Manager From U.N.C.L.E.”

Mr. Grey’s first two initials are W.P., as in Witness Protection.

I’m beginning to like Mr. Gray. He’s the strong, silent type, apparently. And, I dare say, competent in his field (even if his past turns out to be a bit shady)….

Should anyone be too surprised at his arrival?Seems a meeting was arranged by Mr. Evans not too long ago, even if Frank didn’t get the memo:^

@ Argy and Gary: Sorry for the late responses (or early, as in not too long ago) I just left…

Hopefully Mr. Gray can save the day.

So does this mean that Mr. Gray was unemployed until this moment? If so has he been living off of Gunther’s mom?

Okay, okay you dudes and dudettes who figured this out; kudos to you!! This is quite a good example of not judging a book by its cover. I would think things will be moving along swimmingly now. And the great thing is that this guy does it for love—clearly he loves Gunther’s mom, and they might fulfill some needs each other has—and to help the Luannverse friends. Can anyone note when Luann might have met Mr. Gray?

You said….* “Funny if he turned out to be TJ’s dad.”* I think it would be funny for the comic, sure…. but for TJ? Not so much. :) Did TJ ever have his last name revealed in all the years of Luann? I cannot recall it ever happening, but I could easily have missed it. So, if this is TJ’s dad… “TJ Gray”… hmm. I would have to imagine that if TJ’s dad is Mr. Gray…. either “Gray” is an assumed name (witness protection program, perhaps?), or TJ’s actual last name is somehow different for some reason.

7Mr. Gray being here is sure to make the warehouse arc more interesting, that is for sure. Usually, Mr. Gray has basically a psychological “no affect” expression on his face…. it is interesting to note that in the first panel, it appears he has the slightest of grins on his face. Mr. Gray initially reminded me of Rush Limbaugh. But now, he reminds me of “Brooks” from “Real Housewives of Orange County”. I do not traditionally watch RH shows, but this one version, my wife is quite a fan of, and in order to be with her while she watches it, I have ended up watching the silly show as well. On RHOC, Brooks is the boyfriend of one of the housewives named Vicki. In terms of Greg’s drawing today…. I am especially a fan of how Greg has drawn Frank’s expression. The skeptical, squinty-eyed, “jaundiced” sort of look that Frank is giving to Mr. Gray is very, very well done, IMO. To me it is impressive how with only a few, minor strokes of the pen, Greg was able to convey that sentiment on Frank’s face.

Well, I did call it yesterday & I do seem to remember that he was a Vegas club manager before coming to Pitt. Will all the tradesman show up tomorrow? It is Wednesday, enjoy it.

Hey Vito! Knuckles! Get over here! Now!

Gray shows his true colors! Hurray for Gray!

But before making calls, wouldn’t it be helpful to learn the name of the contractors?

Call in some boys from out of town, take care of everything.

You and seismic bringing the contrary view out there. This all leads up to Toni and Brad’s (Bwad’s) wedding, and a number of other arcs, such as Luann and Quill, and pretty much everyone but Rosa and Delta who are in other places or countries right now. So lets stay tuned whether your contrartian view applies or not.!

“and at this stage he’s helping, not controlling. If they agree, then their relationship may move on to that level.”^Exactly!!

And, if anyone decides to argue with Mr. Gray, they won’t have a leg to stand on……literally..

“must be related to Tibbs …”^Lol, “That’s What They Call Him”….

saved by the gray man

“Today you ask me for a favor… tomorrow, maybe I ask you for a favor”; line from “The Godfather”.

Why isn’t he still in Vegas?TJ needs to know, before this goes further.

Silent but deadly type…sounds like he’s a killer business man.

Alias Moe Green.

Mr Gray to the rescue… Vegas huh?! I do not think you could say exciting and danger in the same word any better.

Well, he was totally unexpected…and usually the thing that always happens in this strip.

The real Winston Wolf doesn’t resemble Harvey Keitel.

This is the way that innocent men get lynched. Try a little NEGATIVE feedback, people. Get your system under control….

It is very creepy that Mr. Gray can start making phone calls without even talking to them. How does he know what they need? Has he been stalking them?

What type of club?

The obvious implication is that Mr. Gray is calling Mr. White, Mr. Pink, and Mr. Blonde, and the plasterer will wind up “Stuck in the Middle with You”, minus an ear. Of course, that obvious implication is meant to be misleading (just like Bernice’s brownies), and it will turn out that Mr. Gray is a harmless (albeit dull) middle-aged guy from Las Vegas who managed a bingo parlor for the Knights of Columbus.

Hmmm, he doesn’t look Italian….but does he have a deal for you!

I just came to this strip after reading reading Doonesbury’s re-posting of a 1985 strip which talked about Sinatra’s very close links with mafia figures. It was a startling juxtaposition. Is Mr. Gray short for Mr. Grabino?

On a plus note, at least the me wasn’t TJ! And if given a choice between trusting my warehouse to the management skills of TJ or the Mob, I would go with the later.

Mr, Fixit, Like the Grey Hulk!

Thank you!!

No such thing as a free lunch, just saying.

“It would be interesting if Mr. Gray and his ‘operatives’ were the reason none of Frank’s contractors showed up. "^Heh, heh, “the offer they couldn’t refuse”. Turned out to be a “trick question”…

To all those naysayers inveying and lynching against Mr. Gray:To any real estate manager or construction supervisor, the status of a construction site becomes apparent within seconds.An experienced person will have many friends in the trade; a lot of whom are happy to share their skills on a social project, if only to advertise their craft, and ingratiate themselves for future large commissions. Or, believe it or not: Some people actually enjoy sharing and contributing.Besides, Mr. Gray wants to impress his girlfriend: Men have been known to do many things for their woman, including building places like the Taj Mahal (not the one in Vegas, if you need to ask…).

That was my thought as well.

-He was completely expected.

Since he said he managed a club, I expected him to show up when all the renovations had been completed and the DeGroots were actually setting up a club. Managing a club (overseeing wholesale ordering of food and drink, bookkeeping, paying taxes, hiring bands, overseeing a kitchen) isn’t like managing a construction or building rehab project.

I think that “Mister” Gray is the most interesting person there. Is that wrong?

Just as long as he’s not Stephen King’s Mr. Gray.

the right person for the right job.

Because he worked in Vegas doesn’t mean ALL of his contacts are in Vegas. You don’t think people network and know others in their industry that are located in other parts of the country?

Also, all he said was that he’d make calls. He didn’t say hey I’ll get some folks to do this job for you for free.

But it is more fun to dream up dramatic scenarios. After all, it is a comic.

No, you don’t have to know how to actually install plumbing or wire a building. But you do need to be able to read the blueprints/plans and make certain that the people who are doing the work are following the plan, and complying with the life safety codes. That’s why those of us who aren’t expert at building hire general contractors, so they can verify that what’s being done is up to code.

I brought an inspector onto the grounds of a townhouse being built for me over 20 years ago, and he told me what was being done wrong. I wouldn’t have known, otherwise, There was no overall manager on the job. Each contractor just worked separately.

The blueprints were in a pile in the corner. No one was looking at them…

We don’t know where Mrs. Berger works. He works there. We don’t know his position there.

You people are all so suspicious.

That simplifies things greatly.

I remember when the answer seemed so clear…

We don’t know what Mr. Gray does for a living in Pitt. (For that matter, we don’t know what Mrs. Berger does, either.) He could work in a hardware store, in which case he would certainly know lots of local contractors, or maybe he is in real estate or banking, and he has overseen the build-out of lots of local commercial properties like the warehouse. He could have lots of reasons to know what he’s doing and who to call to make sure it gets done. Maybe he’s lived in Pitt for several years now and is quite familiar with local businesses. He and Mrs. Berger night have been co-workers for years before Gunther moved to Peru and she started dating him.

PC types? In this group? I doubt it. Everyone is in it for the fun of the game and I’m about the least PC type you can find. Who wants to walk on egg shells all day long?

This is the most refreshing comment thread I have seen in years on this page. Notice how it isn’t overrun by the endless lists of bad jokes? I’m sorry, but sometimes a person just needs to realize that they are constantly dominating the board. Or should we call it “bored”?

@implausible i’m sure it is news to you as you seem to be on a one track negative mindset and not willing to think beyond your one idea. because someone is a club manager doesn’t mean they have to stay in that one realm their entire life or career. how is it impossible to think that he’d ever leave Vegas and meet other people who could possibly be in the construction business?