Ryan Pelton brings 'Elvis' to Penn's Peak

Ryan Pelton, an international, award-winning Elvis tribute artist, actor, and singer-songwriter, is coming to Penn's Peak at 8 p.m. April 22. He often refers to himself as the "Forrest Gump" of the ETA world, and claims to have been blessed with an extraordinary amount of dumb luck.

In September 1998, Pelton was dared by his mother to enter a local Elvis contest in Columbus, Ohio. At the time, Pelton was building websites for a living. He didn't grow up in an "Elvis" household.

He knew little about the King of rock 'n' roll, except for the fact that adults in public often said he looked like a "young Elvis" growing up. Despite only having one week to prepare, Ryan entered the contest and against all odds, he won.

"I remember having to write the lyrics on my hand because I wasn't familiar with any of the songs. And keep in mind, I had never sang before in my life before that first contest."

Pelton's days as a website designer were soon over, as he wanted to pursue the entertainment world, saying, "I don't want to be 90 years old one day and look back saying, 'what if?'"

In 2011, Pelton decided it was time to take his career to the next level when he released his first original album, "Wash Over Me." Within a week after the release of the album, he was signed as a songwriter by a well-known Nashville publishing company.

Shortly thereafter, Pelton was offered the lead role in a Hollywood film called "The Identical." He took on the screen name of "Blake Rayne" for the film, which also starred Ray Liotta, Ashley Judd and Seth Green. The film, which won the audience choice award for best film at the Nashville Film Festival, opened in theaters on Sept. 5, 2014.

Pelton continues to write and record his original music under the name of Blake Rayne, and is currently working on his first original album under that name.

Tickets are available at all Ticketmaster outlets, the Penn's Peak box office and Roadies Restaurant and Bar. For more information, go to www.pennspeak.com or call 866-605-7325.