First we find out there's no Santa, and now this. Bob Ross, he of happy tree-painting fame, didn't actually have curly hair. That's right: The wild, untamed 'fro is nothing but a chimera, a phony, a fake. We'll allow you a moment to catch your breath.
According to his longtime business partner, Annette Kowalski, the perm came into being during Ross' early years as a struggling painter. When he got out of the Air Force, "he got this bright idea that he could save money on haircuts," Kowalski told NPR. "So he let his hair grow, he got a perm, and decided he would never need a haircut again."
But there was a catch: By the time he'd gotten enough money to change his hairstyle, the curly look had become his signature. He was stuck with it.
"He could never, ever, ever change his hair, and he was so mad about that," says Kowalski. The burden of success. Although, since Ross and his 'fro eventually appeared in over 400 episodes of his show Joy of Painting, making him a much-loved icon in the process, hopefully he wasn't too bummed out about it.
And while Ross sadly died in 1995 of lymphoma at the age of 52, his hair—and his legend—still lives on. Hopefully they have plenty of happy trees up there in heaven, Bob. And hopefully they allow you to finally wear your hair straight.
