The Joy of Painting star Bob Ross was famous for his bushy wild curls yet the surprising reason for his choice of hairstyle is not what you would expect.
Unearthing older pictures of the artist shows that he actually had straight hair. In an older interview with NPR Annette Kowalski revealed that his curls were actually a perm which he got in order to save money.
"He got this bright idea that he could save money on haircuts. So he let his hair grow, he got a perm, and decided he would never need a haircut again," she said.
© Instagram"He could never, ever, ever change his hair, and he was so mad about that. He got tired of that curly hair," she added.
She went onto say how committed he was to the show: "Bob used to lay in bed at night, he told me, he rehearsed every word. He knew exactly what he was going to say on every one of those programs."
© InstagramAnnette also spoke about it to Mental Floss in 2015: "When we got a line of paints and brushes, we put his picture on," she said.
"The logo is a picture of Bob with that hair, so he could never get it cut. He wasn't always happy about that."
© InstagramBob then fell ill with lymphoma and had to wear a wig to cover up his loss of hair.
"He didn't have any hair," his son Steve explained. "He was skinny, so skinny. And we had to wet his lips because he couldn't drink."
Bob died in 1995 from cancer and according to Joan Kowalski, president of Bob Ross Inc. he "dedicated his life to making art accessible to everyone."
© InstagramIn November 2025, Bob's paintings went to auction and sparked a bidding war with proceeds reaching $600,000. "This auction ensures his legacy continues to support the very medium that brought his joy and creativity into American homes for decades," Joan added.
"We’re thrilled with the results of this auction, which has surpassed our expectations," Jim Dunford, President and CEO of American Public Television, said.
"These funds will help local stations continue to serve their communities with impactful programming. We’re deeply grateful to Bob Ross, Inc. for shining a spotlight on the need to support public media, at this critical time."
The Joy of Painting ran from 1983 right up until his death in 1994 and it inspired many viewers the world over to unleash their creativity.
"Anybody can paint. All you need is a dream in your heart and a little practice," Bob once said.
