Contestant Cleans Up

Wayne O’Dell, 49, an auto parts salesman from Mesa, Ariz., was chosen over 49 others who showed up Thursday at the Beverly Hilton as the West Coast entry in the Mr. Clean look-alike contest.

O’Dell won $1,000 and a trip to New York to compete in the national contest. The winner there will receive $30,000 and a contract for a nationwide tour in a new campaign to promote the liquid cleanser with the burly bald man on the label.

True to its billing, “We’re looking for a few bald men,” the contest drew many entrants who actually were bald, although a few confessed that they had shaved their heads.

Most of the applicants--dressed in white T-shirts, trousers, white shoes and earrings--were asked to pose, hold the product and then scrub a floor for the judges.

Asked the secret for his victory, O’Dell replied: “. . . Living a clean life.”