Thursday, November 4, 2010

Chilean miner to visit Letterman, Graceland

Chilean miner Edison Pena was nicknamed Chilean miner Edison Pena was nicknamed "The Runner," because he jogged to Elvis Presley's music while trapped underground.Edison Pena was one of 33 miners trapped underground in Chile for more than two monthsWhile trapped, Pena ran in the mine's tunnelsThe Elvis fan will be on Letterman on Thursday and is expected to visit Graceland in January

New York (CNN) -- Edison Pena, the Chilean miner who will take part in the New York City marathon this weekend, will appear on the "Late Show with David Letterman" on Thursday.

It will be the first in-studio interview for any of the miners since their October rescue, the network said.

Pena will also visit Graceland during Elvis Presley's birthday celebrations in Memphis, Tennessee. The celebrations will be between January 6-9, the Elvis Presley Enterprises said in a statement.

The 34-year-old will get a private tour of the mansion and Elvis' grave. After that, he will fly to Las Vegas, Nevada, to watch a Cirque du Soleil show based on Elvis' music.

"Pena jogged to music from the king of rock 'n' roll and helped keep morale high by leading Elvis sing-a-longs," the statement said.

He and 32 other miners were trapped about 2,000 feet below ground.

The 12th miner to be rescued earned the nickname "the runner" for jogging through one of the mine's tunnels. He was eventually forced to stop after rocks fell along his route.

He was originally invited to attend the marathon as a spectator, but insisted on running in the 26.2-mile marathon.

Despite speaking little English, Pena knows most of the words to Elvis classics and used them to keep the other miners upbeat during their 69-day ordeal.

CNN's Lonzo Cook contributed to this report.


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