ɹˈɔs wʌz bˈɔːɹn ɪn zˈeɪnzvɪl, oʊhˈaɪoʊ, bˌʌt hɪz mˈʌðɚ, ᵻlˈɪzəbəθ ɹˈʌsəl, ɐ nˈaɪtklʌb sˈɪŋɚɹ ɪnðə nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd twˈɛnti z ænd nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd θˈɜːɾi z, mˈuːvd ðə fˈæmɪli tə dˈeɪtən wɛn jˈʌŋ ɹˈɔs wʌz sˈɛvən.
Ross was born in Zanesville, Ohio, but his mother, Elizabeth Russell, a nightclub singer in the 1920s and 1930s, moved the family to Dayton when young Ross was seven.