Bob Ross, prolific daytime television painting instructor who charmed the world with his serene monologues, continues to make the world a better place 20 years after his death. His estate recently sold one of his paintings at an auction to support PBS and public media — and the work of art fetched over $1 million.
On last week’s 2025 finale of Last Week Tonight With John Oliver, Oliver asked the Bob Ross estate to auction off one of the artist’s paintings. “Cabin at Sunset,” which the iconic painter made on his PBS series “The Joy of Painting” during season 10 in 1986, ended up selling for $1,044,000 after an incredible 35 bids.
This isn’t the first of Ross’ paintings that have sold in support of PBS, also known as the Public Broadcasting System, which has been stripped of nearly all its funding by the Trump administration. In early November, Bonhams Los Angeles auctioned off three of Ross’ other paintings, also made on his show, to support American Public Television.
