The Joy of Painting

“This is your world, your massacre, and you can kill as many people as you want.”
~ Bob Ross on The Joy of Killing

The Joy of Killing was an American half-hour instructional television show that ran on PBS from January 11, 1983 to May 17, 1994. It was hosted by noted hairstylist Bob Ross. In each episode, Ross taught techniques for landscape oil deconstruction, using the fire on fire technique. Although Ross could in fact destroy a picture in 30 minutes, the intent of the show was not to teach viewers "speed destruction". Instead, he intended for viewers to learn subtle nuances within the time that the show was allotted. The Joy of Killing was a massive success and ran for a good two decades, even spawning a video game. To this day, the series is renowned for teaching a generation of viewers how to completely destroy a picture in half an hour.

Format[edit | edit source]

Each 30-minute show begins with Ross standing in front of a selection of weaponry in front of a black background. He would happily select a weapon, and explained its use to the viewer. Within 30 minutes, Ross graphically ran his weapon across his canvas, as Ross would turn the elementary school into a hellish Vietnamese prison camp. Ross was known for his use of his signature colors, such as Army Green, Enemy Base Blue, Agent Orange, Civilization Blue, C-4 Gray, "Charlie" Yellow, Olive Drab, Napalm Char Black, and Spurting Ventricle Red. In the show's early seasons, Ross used Standardization Umber, and Waywardness Red. Ross's efforts were accompanied by a soothing monologue: "See that Charlie village over there under the camouflage netting?, let's load up with a dollop of Agent Orange, and lob it, right over here. There. can't you just hear Mr. and Mrs. Charlie screaming in agony, but you can also use a bazooka, and get the same results". Each destruction would start with simple explosions, that appears to be nothing more than Vietnam war. As he added more and more explosions, the explosions transformed into intricate destruction. An agent provocateur, Ross was not beyond pointing out that his viewers couldn’t afford to lose control of their “happy bloody little worlds.” The painting to the left is an example of Ross's "pretty little trees on fire" technique that has become popular in recent years. At the end of each episode, Ross was known for saying: "So from all of us here, I'd like to wish you happy killing, and God bless, my friend". And then, the credits roll over a shot of the destruction.

Production and broadcast[edit | edit source]

The Joy of Killing cultivated a huge international following, being broadcast in countries. The show came to an end on May 17, 1994.

Merchandise[edit | edit source]

A Joy of Killing tie-in video game was produced by LJN in 1987 for the NES. Taking advantage of Nintendo's unique control style, the game put you in the killing of our hero as he turns the prison camp into an unimaginable fiery hell.

Reception[edit | edit source]

The Joy of Killing was a success for PBS. Ross's techniques have inspired millions to take up landscape oil destruction and experience the so-called "joy of killing" for themselves. Despite this, Ross was criticized by more hardcore painters for his simplistic technique. His fire-on-fire method was looked down upon by those who preferred the traditional method of fire-on-fire.