Bob Ross (publisher)
Bob Ross | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 2, 1934 New York City, United States |
| Died | December 10, 2003 (aged 69) San Francisco, United States |
| Occupations | Publisher, activist |
Bob Ross (April 2, 1934 – December 10, 2003) was the co-founder and former publisher of the Bay Area Reporter and a key gay rights and AIDS activist in San Francisco.[1][2] For his lifetime work, he was inducted into the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association Hall of Fame for creating two of the "most well-respected and enduring LGBT publications in the country".[3]
Biography
Ross was born in New York City, United States, and moved to San Francisco in 1956.[2] He was working as a chef at the time he started Bay Area Reporter in 1971 with friend Paul Bentley.[2][4]
In addition to the weekly Bay Area Reporter, Ross published the long-running Gay Comix, beginning in 1985 and continuing until 1998.
Ross died on December 10, 2003, due to complications from diabetes.[1]
Bob Ross Foundation
In 1996, he established the Bob Ross Foundation, which donated to a "broad portfolio of nonprofits". In 2016, the foundation donated $50,000 to purchase equipment for the GLBT Historical Society to digitize and publish a complete searchable archive of the Bay Area Reporter from the first issue in 1971 until 2005, when the newspaper began online operations.[5]
Awards and honors
The annual scholarship awarded by the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association of Northern California is named for Bob Ross.[6] It was established in 2006.
In 2013, the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association inducted Bob Ross into the HLGJA Hall of Fame.[7][3]
In 2017, The Bob Ross LGBT Senior Center was opened. It is the first in San Francisco dedicated to the needs of the LGBTQ senior community.[8]
References
- 1 2 Asimov, Nanette (December 12, 2003). "Bob Ross -- pioneering gay journalist and activist". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
- 1 2 3 "Bob Ross, 69; Publisher of S.F. Newspaper Oriented Toward Gays". Los Angeles Times. December 15, 2003. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
- 1 2 Brydum, Sunnivie (August 4, 2013). "Founders of Bay Area Reporter, Philadelphia Gay News Inducted Into LGBT Journalists Hall of Fame". The Advocate. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
- ↑ Szymanski, Katie (2002). "Bob Ross: Thirty Years of Bay Area Reporter". In Winston Leyland (ed.). Out in the Castro: Desire, Promise, Activism. San Francisco, CA: Leyland Publications. pp. 107–110. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
- ↑ Staver, Sari (October 20, 2016). "GLBT Historical Society to digitize B.A.R. archive". Bay Area Reporter. Archived from the original on 2017-01-01. Retrieved December 30, 2016.
- ↑ Szymanski, Zak (March 29, 2006). "Journalism award named for Bob Ross". Bay Area Reporter. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
- ↑ Colbert, Chuck (August 29, 2013). "Ross, Segal Enter NLGJA Hall of Fame". Bay Area Reporter. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
- ↑ Nahmod, David-Elijah (April 28, 2017). "Honoring Bob Ross, San Francisco's First LGBT Senior Center Opens In Hayes Valley". Hoodline. Retrieved October 15, 2020.