Happy Accidents, Betrayal & Greed

Steve Ross is certainly a sympathetic character and there is no doubt that he and his father had a loving and mutually respectful relationship. In the film we find out that Bob hoped that Steve and his epic mullet would follow in his own footsteps and take over his long-running show. 

But what is really brought to the forefront of the film was the business relationship and the friendship between the Rosses and the Kowalskis. There is even an alleged — gasp — affair between Bob Ross and Annette Kowalski, both of whom were married to other people at the time, Bob to his long-time wife, Jane, and Annette to Walt. Steve alleged it. Annette denied it. Who knows? It's just another way the relationships between the Ross and the Kowalski families was complicated.

Regardless, the Kowalski's relationship with Bob Ross started with a tragedy. Per her own words in an old interview shown in the documentary, Annette Kowalski's son died and she was in a deep depression when she discovered Bob Ross, who was at the time traveling the nation doing painting workshops. When Annette met him via a live class, he changed her life. 

His genuine infectious happiness and positive outlook helped pull her out of her grief. Annette said she once told Bob she doesn't know what it is that he has, but "Let's put it in a bottle and sell it." That foreshadowed what was to come.