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Phil Robertson
Robertson at Louisiana Tech in 1967
Born	Phil Alexander Robertson (1946-04-24) April 24, 1946 (age 78) Vivian, Louisiana, USA
Education	Louisiana Tech University
Television	Duck Dynasty
Spouse	Marsha Kay Carroway ​(m. 1966)​
Children	Alan Merritt Robertson Jason Silas Robertson Willie Jess Robertson Jules Jeptha Robertson
Relatives	Silas Robertson (brother)
Website	duckcommander.com

Phil Alexander Robertson (born April 24, 1946) is an American professional hunter, businessman (Duck Commander), and reality television star on the popular television series, Duck Dynasty. He is also featured on the television show Buck Commander, a hunting program on the Outdoor Channel. Robertson is married with four children, a devout Christian and strongly pro-life.

He attended Louisiana Tech University where he played football, but turned down an opportunity to play professionally with the Washington Redskins. He received a master's degree in education and spent several years teaching.

Robertson attracted controversy in 2013 when he was briefly suspended by A&E after making controversial comments about homosexuality. Following a strong backlash from his supporters, A&E lifted the suspension after nine days and before any episodes were impacted.

Early life and education

Robertson was born in Vivian, Louisiana. He was the fifth of seven children of James and Merritt Robertson (née Hale). Because of financial setbacks during his childhood, the family lived in rugged conditions having no electricity, toilet or bathtub. The family rarely went into town to buy groceries, and instead lived off of the fruits and vegetables they grew in their garden; the meat from deer, squirrels, fish and other game they hunted and fished; and the pigs, chickens, and cattle they raised.

In his book, Happy, Happy, Happy, Robertson recalls that "It was the 1950s when I was a young boy, but we lived like it was the 1850s... but we were always happy, happy, happy no matter the circumstances."

Halfway between Vivian and Hosston is Robertson's restored log cabin birth home. In September 2013, it was for sale for an asking price of $750,000. The property is now owned by Robertson's cousin, Nathan Hale, who acquired it for an initial $55,000 investment around 2009.

College and football

As an athlete in high school, Robertson was all-state in football, baseball, and track, which afforded him the opportunity to attend Louisiana Tech University in Ruston on a football scholarship in the late 1960s. There he played first-string quarterback for the Bulldogs, ahead of Pro Football Hall of Famer Terry Bradshaw, the first overall pick in the 1970 NFL Draft. When he arrived at Tech in 1966, Bradshaw caused a media frenzy on account of his reputation of being a football sensation from nearby Shreveport. Robertson was a year ahead of Bradshaw, and was the starter for two seasons in 1966 and 1967, and chose not to play in 1968.

In his time at Louisiana Tech, Robertson completed 179 of 411 passing attempts for 2,237 yards. He threw 12 touchdowns, but had 34 interceptions. It was thought he had the potential for a pro career, but Robertson was more interested in hunting. Bradshaw once remarked about Robertson's love of hunting, saying "... Phil Robertson, loved hunting more than he loved football. He'd come to practice directly from the woods, squirrel tails hanging out of his pockets, duck feathers on his clothes. Clearly he was a fine shot, so no one complained too much."

When Paul Harvey approached Robertson with a recruitment to play professionally for the Washington Redskins, he declined because football conflicted with his hunting. Besides, football was only about holding up his scholarship to him, while Bradshaw practically lived and breathed the sport. Robertson put it in this way: "Terry went for the bucks, and I chased after the ducks."

Robertson received a bachelor's degree in physical education and a master's in education.

Career

Early career

Robertson initially spent several years teaching before becoming a commercial fisherman. In the 1970s, his marriage became strained. Robertson was running a bar in 1975.

Duck Commander

As an avid duck hunter, Robertson was dissatisfied with the condition of duck calls. He began to experiment with making a call that would produce the exact sound of a duck. He invented his first Duck Commander call in 1972. He received a patent for this call and the Duck Commander Company was incorporated in 1973. Today, the company of Duck Commander is a multi-million dollar empire, headed by his son, Willie Robertson.

Duck Dynasty

Robertson is presented in Duck Dynasty as the patriarch of the entire Robertson clan.

Disputes with A&E

When A&E decided to add bleeps to the show to add "spice", Robertson went to the network and told them to not make it seem like they use profanity, as they do not. Also, while they did not cut prayers, they did cut out the part of Robertson's prayer where he said "in Jesus' name". When A&E told them that they did not want to offend the Muslim population, Phil asked, "What year is it?" They replied "2012." He pointed out that the year was 2012 AD, or in the year of Our Lord. He asked them why they would take someone out who the entire universe is based on. He also asked A&E how many Muslims were watching Duck Dynasty.

GQ comments

On December 18, 2013, A&E announced the indefinite suspension of Robertson from the network following an interview with Drew Magary of GQ. During the interview for a featured article in GQ's January 2014 issue, titled, "What the Duck?"; When asked what he thought was sinful Robertson responded, "Start with homosexual behavior and just morph out from there. Bestiality, sleeping around with this woman and that woman and that woman and those men." He also paraphrased a Biblical passage from First Corinthians saying "Don’t be deceived. Neither the adulterers, the idolaters, the male prostitutes, the homosexual offenders, the greedy, the drunkards, the slanderers, the swindlers—they won’t inherit the kingdom of God. Don’t deceive yourself. It’s not right." Robertson also questioned the appeal of same-sex relationships saying that a vagina is more appealing to a man. However, Robertson also said that he does not judge anyone, but leaves that up to God saying, "We just love ’em, give ’em the good news about Jesus—whether they’re homosexuals, drunks, terrorists. We let God sort ’em out later, you see what I’m saying?"

In response to A&E's suspension, Robertson released a statement saying, "I would never treat anyone with disrespect just because they are different from me." After a strong backlash from supporters, A&E lifted the suspension before a single episode was impacted.

Personal life

Robertson and Marsha "Kay" Carroway started dating in 1964, when Kay was only 14 years old. They married two years later, in 1966. They had their first son, Alan, while they were attending college.

Beliefs

Robertson is a devout Christian, a member of the White's Ferry Road Church of Christ in West Monroe, and is outspoken about his beliefs. He had various personal problems in his 20s including excessive alcohol drinking, causing a separation in the marriage for a period and he credits a subsequent religious awakening for being able to overcome the problems In an interview prior to the release of his autobiography, he said:

My message is to get human beings to love God, love their neighbor and for the life of me I just don't see the downside of human beings not being so mean to one another and actually care for one another and not steal from one another and not murder each other for their tennis shoes. That's the message I have. America and the world, we have a love problem. I'm trying to get people aware of that. A loving person is not going to pick up a spear or a knife because when the Ten Commandments were written it was before guns, and God was saying, 'Look, quit murdering each other.' Now I'm just trying to say, 'Folks, let's try to love one another no matter what the color of their skin.'

Robertson is pro-life and frequently speaks about the issue during public appearances.

Underage marriage

In a video from a Sportsmen's Ministry event in Georgia in 2009, Robertson endorsed the marriage of underage girls. The video shows Robertson speaking about the virtues of young women who can "pick ducks", saying "Look, you wait till they get to be 20 years old - the only picking that’s gonna take place is your pocket. You gotta marry these girls when they’re about 15 or 16." Robertson himself began dating his future wife when she was 14 and married her when she was 16.

References

1. Meehan, Sarah (December 19, 2013). "Will Under Armour continue to outfit 'Duck Dynasty' star after anti-gay comment?". Baltimore Business Journal. Retrieved December 27, 2013.
2. Macatee, Rebecca (December 23, 2013). "Phil Robertson Breaks Silence on Anti-Gay Remarks; Duck Dynasty Star 'Will Not Give or Back Off'". E! Entertainment. Retrieved December 23, 2013.
3. Rothman, Michael (December 20, 2013). "'Duck Dynasty's' Phil Robertson Has Made Other Anti-Gay Comments in the Past". ABC News. Retrieved December 23, 2013.
4. Matthews-El, Toni (December 19, 2013). "Phil Robertson Booted From 'Duck Dynasty'". WebProNews. Retrieved December 27, 2013.
5. ^ O'Connell, Michael (December 27, 2013). "A&E Welcomes Phil Robertson Back to 'Duck Dynasty'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 27, 2013.
6. "Duck Dynasty's Phil Robertson had impoverished childhood with no running water or electricity". Starcasm. May 7, 2013. Retrieved August 30, 2013.
7. "Jimmy Watson, Birth home of 'Duck Dynasty' stars up for sale in Hosston". The Shreveport Times. September 23, 2013. Retrieved September 24, 2013.
8. ^ Williams, Doug (February 26, 2013). "How Good was Phil Robertson at Football?". ESPN. Retrieved August 30, 2013.
9. "He will never duck challenge". The Palm Beach Post. November 8, 1983. p. D5.
10. Patterson, Chris (September 13, 2013). "Louisiana Tech honored Terry Bradshaw, Phil Robertson Thursday". CBS Sports. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
11. Fox, Larry (November 1979). "Terry Bradshaw, Steel Drivin' Man". Boys' Life. 69 (11). Boy Scouts of America: 6–10. ISSN 0006-8608.
12. ^ Zaldivar, Gabe (April 1, 2013). ""Duck Dynasty's" Phil Robertson Once Gave Terry Bradshaw Starting QB Spot". Bleacher Report. Retrieved August 29, 2013.
13. Anderson, Holly (March 22, 2012). "Duck Punt: How Phil Robertson found stardom after giving up football". Sports Illustrated Campus Union. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
14. Turpin, Ruby (March 5, 2013). "Photos Video: Duck Dynasty's Phil Robertson as quarterback for Louisiana Tech and high school". Starcasm. Retrieved August 29, 2013.
15. ^ "Duckman; Phil Robertson". Duck Commander. Retrieved August 30, 2013.
16. Copeland, Stephen (March 23, 2013). "Duck Dynasty, How It Almost Never Happened". Sports Spectrum. Retrieved July 31, 2013.
17. "Duck Dynasty Cast Member Testimony". The Woodnote. March 13, 2013. Archived from the original on September 28, 2013. Retrieved July 31, 2013.
18. "Willie Robertson". Duck Dynasty. A&E TV. Retrieved December 22, 2013.
19. "Willie & Phil Robertson talk about fake bleeps and praying in Jesus' name" (video). Sports Spectrum Mag. Google. Retrieved August 7, 2013.
20. ^ Magary, Drew (January 2014). "What the Duck?". GQ. New York. Retrieved December 21, 2013.
21. Merrigan, Tara Wanda (December 19, 2013), "Readers React to GQ's 'Duck Dynasty' Story and Phil Robertson's Indefinite Suspension", GQ, retrieved December 21, 2013
22. Goldberg, Lesley (December 18, 2013), "'Duck Dynasty's' Phil Robertson on Indefinite Hiatus Following Anti-Gay Remarks", The Hollywood Reporter, retrieved December 21, 2013.
23. Rice, Lynette (December 20, 2013). "'Duck Dynasty': Crisis experts weigh in". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved December 21, 2013.
24. Hibberd, James (December 20, 2013). "'Duck Dynasty': New episodes will include Phil". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved December 21, 2013.
25. "'Duck Dynasty' star Phil Robertson suspended by A&E". Fox News Channel. December 19, 2013. Retrieved December 28, 2013.
26. Woo, Kelly (April 16, 2013). "How Did the 'Duck Dynasty' Couples Meet?". Yahoo TV. Retrieved July 31, 2013.
27. Bailey, Sarah Pulliam (December 19, 2013). "Phil Robertson's suspension from 'Duck Dynasty' sends fans rallying to his side". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 20, 2013.
28. Schenk, Ruth (August 14, 2013). "Keeping God in command: Phil Robertson, family living out faith on small screen". The Southeast Outlook. Retrieved August 25, 2013. For Phil, seven years between the ages of 21 and 28 were like sliding down a muddy river bank. He drank too much whiskey, ran wild, smoked marijuana, popped pills and hunted ducks, leaving his wife, affectionately called "Miss Kay," to raise their three sons alone.
29. Gosten, Nicki (May 7, 2013). "Duck Dynasty Star Phil Robertson talks values family in new book". Fox News Channel.
30. Sifuentes Jr., Rey (April 8, 2013). "Duck Dynasty Star captivates NTCC crowd". Daily Tribune. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
31. Barnhart, Melissa (May 18, 2013). "'Duck Dynasty' Stars Phil, Miss Kay: How Jesus Christ Saved Their Marriage, Restored Their Family". The Christian Post. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
32. Davis, Shoshana (December 30, 2013). ""Duck Dynasty" saga: A&E facing more Phil Robertson controversy". CBS News.
33. Marcotte, Amanda (December 30, 2013). "Phil Robertson Says Girls Should Be Married Off at "15 or 16"". Slate.
34. Pennacchia, Robyn (December 30, 2013). "Phil Robertson says men should marry girls when they are 15 so they will be better at picking ducks". Death and Taxes.

External links

• Official website

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• 1946 births
• Living people
• American football quarterbacks
• American inventors
• American members of the Churches of Christ
• Businesspeople from Louisiana
• Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football players
• Participants in American reality television series
• People from Caddo Parish, Louisiana
• People from West Monroe, Louisiana
• Louisiana Republicans