Background and career
Silas Merritt Robertson (born April 27, 1948), often referred to as "Uncle Si", is an American television personality, veteran, and a retired reed maker for duck calls at Duck Commander. He is best known for his role on A&E's Duck Dynasty, on which he had emerged as a breakout cast member. He had also appeared on shows such as the Outdoor Channel's Buck Commander and The Duckmen of Louisiana, and was the eponymous host of the Duck Dynasty spin-off Going Si-Ral. Si has also made a guest appearance on Last Man Standing, and in Big Idea Entertainment's Veggie Tales episode Merry Larry and the True Light of Christmas as Silas the Narrator. He is currently cohosting the podcast Duck Call Room.
Robertson was born to James and Merritt (née Hale) Robertson, the sixth of seven children. He has four brothers, Jimmy Frank, Harold, Tommy, and Phil (who was born 2 years before him), and two sisters, Judy and Jan. Because of financial setbacks of their family during Si and his siblings' childhoods, the Robertson family lived in rugged conditions with significantly fewer amenities than the average American enjoyed. In high school, Si attended North Caddo High School in Vivian, Louisiana which is in Caddo Parish, Louisiana. He played on the football team in the footsteps of his brother Phil, even wearing the same #10 jersey.
After dropping out of Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, Louisiana after three quarters, he was drafted into the United States Army during the Vietnam War. During the war, his mother sent him a set of Tupperware cups, beans and rice, two boots, and two jars of jalapeño peppers in each boot. He is rarely seen without one of his plastic cups drinking iced tea, which he treats with equal importance. Si retired from the Army in 1993 with the rank of Sergeant First Class (E-7). Robertson is recognized for his military career with an exhibit at the Chennault Aviation and Military Museum in Monroe, Louisiana.
Upon retirement from the Army in 1993, Si found employment at his brother Phil's Duck Commander business. Si has been a big part of the growing business. Before retiring from Duck Commander in 2017, Si's job was to fashion the reeds that are inserted in every patented duck call. Si thought that it is an easy job and was depicted in Duck Dynasty as having difficulties staying on task; he often sought breaks to take a nap or play around with equipment in the warehouse.
In A&E's reality television show Duck Dynasty, Si (or Uncle Si) is one of the main characters. He is perhaps the most well-known and recognized character of the bunch, due to the frequency and quality of his jokes and stories, as well as his general manner. His spontaneous nature often launches the plot of the show into action, whether handcuffing himself to his nephew Willie or spending the prize money of $2,000 at a children's arcade. Robertson also starred in Going Si-Ral, a spinoff which ran from November 16, 2016, to January 18, 2017, on A&E. He and "Si-kick" Willie study the Internet, especially viral videos.
In 2013, Robertson lent his voice and personal appearance to the VeggieTales video Merry Larry and the True Light of Christmas, in which he narrates the video and appears as a mall janitor, in the tradition of the mid 1960s and early 1970s Rankin/Bass Christmas specials and their use of celebrity narrators. In 2015, Robertson along with his nephew and Duck Dynasty co-star Willie appeared on an episode of Last Man Standing. That same year, he appeared as a gas station clerk in the Christian drama film Faith of Our Fathers.
