Phil Robertson

Phil Robertson came from humble origins to become a reality TV star and an empire builder worth hundreds of millions of dollars. When he stoked the flames of controversy with homophobic remarks in a magazine interview, the backlash was surprising in that audiences were fighting to keep his show on the air instead of taking it off. Phil Robertson was born in Vivian, LA, the fifth of seven kids. He grew up in a log cabin home without electricity, a toilet, or bathtub. The family lived on fruits and vegetables they grew in the garden, and they also hunted and raised their own food. Although the family was very poor, Robertson recalled it was a happy home. Robertson went to Louisiana Tech University on a football scholarship in the late sixties around the time that Terry Bradshaw came in and was a hot rising star. Robertson was also good at football, and he achieved a Bachelor's Degree in physical education, along with a Master's in education, but he was more interested in duck hunting. Robertson worked as a teacher, a fisherman, and also ran a bar, leading a wayward life before becoming religious. Robertson also came up with a new duck call, and formed the Duck Commander company in 1973. The company would become a great success, but decades later Robertson would find a whole new level of money and fame as a reality TV star. "Duck Dynasty" (A&E 2012-) was a family affair co-starring Phil's brother Si Robertson, his son Willie Robertson, the CEO of Duck Commander, and his other children. The trademark look of the clan was long, shaggy beards, with father Robertson sporting the longest beard of them all. "Duck Dynasty" debuted on March 21, 2012, and it became one of the biggest reality TV shows on cable, with the premiere of the fourth season in August 2013 garnering 11.8 million viewers. In 2013, the show made $80 million in advertising, and the merchandising for the show made a whopping $400 million. But the show came close to derailing when Robertson made intolerant comments about gays and African-Americans, as well as advocating marrying women when they were still in their early teens, in an interview in GQ Magazine. In response to the outrage, Robertson was briefly suspended from the show by A&E, but there was also a large backlash from fans who demanded his return. Robertson was quickly reinstated, but the controversy still lingered. When the fifth season premiered in January 2014, shortly after the interview was published, its ratings were considerably off the highs of previous seasons.