Known for his big hair, soft voice and soothing brush strokes, the late artist Bob Ross is still helping public television — even 30 years after his death.

What we know:

Thirty of Ross’ original paintings will be auctioned off to raise money for public media stations struggling to pay licensing fees after Congress eliminated $1.1 billion in funding for public broadcasting earlier this year.

The idea is to help stations air popular programs like "The Best of Joy of Painting," based on Ross’ show, "America’s Test Kitchen," "Julia Child’s French Chef Classics" and "This Old House."

The 30 paintings, created over the span of Ross’ career, include his trademark landscapes — calm mountain vistas, serene lakes and gentle trees — many painted on air in under 30 minutes, the length of a single

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