It has been three decades since renowned painter Bob Ross died of complications due to lymphoma, and fans are remembering him through his famous show, The Joy of Painting. A heartwarming episode of Bob catering to a colorblind viewer recently resurfaced, proving he really cared about his audience.
Fans now revisit his clips via YouTube and also support his son, Steve Ross, who has taken after the late artist. The Joy of Painting was cancelled in 1994 due to Bob’s lymphoma diagnosis, which he died of the following year.
Bob Ross’ color blind fan got a special episode in season two
Season two, episode four from 1983 took a different spin as Bob worked with just black and white paint to prove anyone, including the color blind, can paint. He issued a disclaimer saying the session would not be as colorful as previous or subsequent ones because of an encounter at the mall.
A viewer approached Bob during a mall demonstration, telling him he can only see gray tones and, therefore, cannot paint. The fan likely had a worse version of colorblindness called achromatopsia, which limits their vision to grayscale.
Bob Ross made magic with shades of gray.
Further proving his incredible talent, Bob painted his own shades of gray by mixing brown, blue, and white in different proportions as he created a portrait of rocky mountains amid the winter skies. Fans past and present were blown away by Bob’s skills, and the latter took to the comments on YouTube to share their thoughts.
Someone noted that Bob was too pure for the world, and another agreed, saying he taught without being condescending or trying to be famous. “A genuinely good person who wanted others to have the same joy he had,” they added. A third user suggested that a mountain in Alaska be named after Bob as a tribute. “…He earned it,” they quipped.