Extreme Gross-Out

The Comic-Con crowd has a notoriously high threshold for being grossed out (anyone who has smelled the Exhibit Hall can vouch for that) but the standards of repulsiveness should be pushed to the limit at 2 p.m. today.

That’s because the Carlsbad-based Upper Deck Entertainment Company is promoting its new line of Gross Out trading cards by having folks attending the San Diego Comic-Con compete to see who can be the most repulsive.

Organizer Claudine Ricanour says anyone with a gross talent is eligible, whether its being able to play “Yankee Doodle” on the armpits or cover themselves in slime.

Audience members will judge which act is grossest and Ricanour admits the competition will be stiff since the Comic-Con crowd has a higher threshold for grossness than, say, the folks at a church social.

But while Ricanour expects observers to be grossed out, she admits organizers will carefully screen all of the contestants to ensure their tasteless talents are rated PG – as in “pretty gross.”

So much so that Ricanour is asking all potential contestants to clean up after themselves in case they mess up the floor in the name of icky entertainment.

The contest takes place at the Upper Deck exhibit and one grand prize winner will be selected and, according to Ricanour, he or she will receive a “grossed out trophy.”

If all goes well, Ricanour hopes to make the Gross Out contest an annual event.

For information on Upper Deck Entertainment, check out www.upperdeck.com

– DAVID MOYE