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Quiz about Ross Bob Ross
Quiz about Ross Bob Ross

Ross ...Bob Ross Trivia Quiz


Answer these ten questions about popular television painter Bob Ross, known for his "happy little trees" and "happy little clouds".

A multiple-choice quiz by bernie73. Estimated time: 4 mins.
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Author
bernie73
Time
4 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
397,423
Updated
Mar 09 22
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
7 / 10
Plays
684
Last 3 plays: Guest 170 (1/10), Guest 207 (10/10), Guest 152 (8/10).
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Question 1 of 10
1. In which Southern state was Bob Ross born that well matches his sunshine personality? (It is also the same state where he died and where he was buried.) Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. Between his time in school and enlisting in the armed forces, Bob Ross spent some time working for his father, Jack Ross, a carpenter. What sort of injury did Bob receive at this time which left permanent damage? Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. Before he became known for his painting, Bob was a proud veteran of the US Armed Forces. In which branch (over the wild blue yonder) did he serve? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. During much of his career, Bob served at a base in a particular state that might be described as the frontier. Which state was it? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. While in the armed forces, Bob Ross was inspired by an artist that he viewed on television. Which artist, from whom Bob learned his "wet on wet" technique, was this? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. Inspired by an artist he saw on television, Bob Ross would begin his own television art program in 1983. What was the name of this program filled with "happy little trees"? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. While Bob Ross was generally a very private person, he is known to have been married three times. How many children did Bob Ross have from his marriages? Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. Generally speaking, how many copies of a painting would Bob Ross generally create for his 1980s-1990s television art program? (A major exception would be for season 13 of his program.) Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. Bob Ross died at the relatively young age of 52. What was the cause of his death? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. Bob's legacy continued after his death. A 2015 television advertisement for HGTV Sherwin Williams included portrayals of several well known artists including Bob Ross. Which other 20th century artist represented the United States along with Bob? Hint



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Most Recent Scores
Mar 22 2024 : Guest 170: 1/10
Mar 19 2024 : Guest 207: 10/10
Mar 13 2024 : Guest 152: 8/10
Mar 08 2024 : Guest 198: 7/10
Mar 06 2024 : Guest 31: 10/10
Mar 02 2024 : Guest 74: 4/10
Feb 28 2024 : Guest 64: 10/10
Feb 23 2024 : Guest 45: 1/10
Feb 21 2024 : Guest 12: 5/10

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. In which Southern state was Bob Ross born that well matches his sunshine personality? (It is also the same state where he died and where he was buried.)

Answer: Florida

Robert Norman Ross was born on October 29, 1942, in Daytona Beach, FL. He died at the young age of 52 on July 04, 1995, in Orlando, FL. He is buried at Woodlawn Memorial Park in Gotha, FL. The official nickname of Florida is the Sunshine State. Even as a child, Bob showed his sunshine personality with his hobby of caring for injured animals including squirrels, an armadillo, and a snake.
2. Between his time in school and enlisting in the armed forces, Bob Ross spent some time working for his father, Jack Ross, a carpenter. What sort of injury did Bob receive at this time which left permanent damage?

Answer: He lost part of a finger on his left hand.

Bob dropped out of high school after ninth grade to work with his father. The accident caused the loss of part of his left index finger. The injury, however, would not affect him holding an artist's palette in his later career. Incidentally, his mom, Ollie Ross, worked as a waitress.
3. Before he became known for his painting, Bob was a proud veteran of the US Armed Forces. In which branch (over the wild blue yonder) did he serve?

Answer: US Air Force

Bob enlisted in the Air Force at the age of 18 in 1961 and served for 20 years. He served as an enlisted man and eventually rose to the rank of Master Sergeant while working as a medical records technician. He also served time as a drill sergeant. He later described his time in the Air Force as requiring him to be "tough" and "mean" and yell frequently.

He decided after his time in the Air Force he would move to a position where he would not need to shout.
4. During much of his career, Bob served at a base in a particular state that might be described as the frontier. Which state was it?

Answer: Alaska

Much of his career was spent at Eileson Air Force Base, southeast of Fairbanks, AK. (The official nickname of the state of Alaska is the Last Frontier.) Bob's time served in Alaska would play a large role in the subject matter of his later paintings with frequent images of mountains, evergreen forests, and lakes. I would imagine that having grown up in Florida, Bob particularly noticed the very different climate and geography of Alaska.
5. While in the armed forces, Bob Ross was inspired by an artist that he viewed on television. Which artist, from whom Bob learned his "wet on wet" technique, was this?

Answer: Bill Alexander

William "Bill" Alexander (1915-1997) was the host of "The Magic of Oil Painting" (1974-1982), where he frequently demonstrated the "wet on wet" or "alla prima", in which the artist would put a new layer of oil paint overlapping a previous layer before it had fully dried. Bob both viewed episodes of "The Magic of Oil Painting" and trained with Bill Alexander. Though Bob credited Bill Alexander by name in his first episode, as time went on the relationship of the two men became strained.

Jon Gnagy (1907-1981) was the host of early television art program "You Are an Artist" (1946-1950). Albert Dorne (1906-1965) co-founded the Famous Artists' School.
6. Inspired by an artist he saw on television, Bob Ross would begin his own television art program in 1983. What was the name of this program filled with "happy little trees"?

Answer: The Joy of Painting

"The Joy of Painting" (1983-1994) aired over 31 seasons and 403 episodes. The first season was recorded in the studios of WNVC (Falls Church, VA). These episodes are generally thought to have lower quality audio and video and saw limited rebroadcast. All other season were recorded at WIPB (Muncie, IN). Bob's paintings were almost always landscapes with trees, mountains, and clouds as common features. Bob did not take any payment for the episodes, viewing them as a way to promote his art supplies and how-to books. During the height of his popularity, Bob's show played on over 300 different PBS stations.

"Art in Action" aired on CBC television from 1959 to 1961. "Paint This with Jerry Yarnell" began airing on PBS stations in 1999. "100 Great Paintings" aired on BBC 2 television in 1980.
7. While Bob Ross was generally a very private person, he is known to have been married three times. How many children did Bob Ross have from his marriages?

Answer: Bob had one son

Bob and his first wife Vivian Ridge (married to him, 1965-1977) had one son, Steven. Steven appeared on several episodes of "The Joy of Painting" and later worked as a Bob Ross certified instructor. There were no children from Bob's second marriage to Jane Ross (1977-1992) or third marriage to Lynda Brown (1995).
8. Generally speaking, how many copies of a painting would Bob Ross generally create for his 1980s-1990s television art program? (A major exception would be for season 13 of his program.)

Answer: Three copies

Bob would create the first copy of a particular painting and--keeping it off-screen--would use it as a guide for his on-air painting. The majority of an episode of "The Joy of Painting" would feature a medium shot of Bob standing near the canvas on which he was working and a close-up shot of the canvas itself. The second copy of the painting was produced in real time while the episode was being recorded. After the episode was recorded, Bob would create a third copy, pausing frequently to allow an assistant to photograph the developing picture for use in one of his how-to books.

Season 13 was an exception to this as an unknown person or persons stole his prepared paintings before the season began. Bob used this as an opportunity to spontaneously create paintings.
9. Bob Ross died at the relatively young age of 52. What was the cause of his death?

Answer: Lymphoma

Lymphoma is a blood-related cancer with which Bob was diagnosed in the spring of 1994. Bob retired from "The Joy of Painting" in part to focus on his health. Bob was survived by his third wife, his son, a brother, and a half-brother.
10. Bob's legacy continued after his death. A 2015 television advertisement for HGTV Sherwin Williams included portrayals of several well known artists including Bob Ross. Which other 20th century artist represented the United States along with Bob?

Answer: Andy Warhol

The other artists featured in the advertisement were Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Vincent Van Gogh. Andy Warhol (1928-1987) was known for silkscreen paintings of Marilyn Monroe and Campbell's Soup Cans. The actor portraying Bob can be seen with his signature permed Afro, goatee beard, casual shirt, and blue jeans.

Bob's influence on popular art was significant. He was worth an estimated $6 million dollars at the time of his death along with about 2.5 million copies of his how-to books and over 1,000 certified instructors trained by Bob Ross, Inc.
Source: Author bernie73

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
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