Happy Little Drop-and-Give-Me-50

What did Bob "Happy Little Trees" Ross do before becoming PBS's resident mellow hippie artist on The Joy of Painting? Would you believe, Air Force master sergeant? Turns out, the Ross we know is really a reaction against 20 years spent being "the guy who makes you scrub the latrine, the guy who makes you make your bed, the guy who screams at you for being late to work."