Putting the Chartreuse in CW

Dawn Ostroff, president of entertainment for the new network: "Green is also a very happy color. It really represents fun, happy." (By John Paul Filo -- Associated Press)

PASADENA, Calif., July 17

TV critics and the suits of the new CW network are not in perfect harmony on the subject of CW Green.

The CW's head of programming, Dawn Ostroff, is a staunch advocate of CW Green.

Critics, however, feel there is enough sadness in the world without having new broadcast networks going around plastering CW Green -- a melange of baby-puke green and Jolly Rancher apple green -- on billboards, magazines and TV ads.

And they said so in no uncertain terms during Ostroff's Q&A at Summer TV Press Tour 2006 here Monday.

Critics did not actually storm the CW Green-festooned stage, nor did they tear off the CW Green jackets embroidered on the back with "Free to Be Helpful" from the CW interns. But that's about all you can say.

"Would you talk about naming the network CW, when, in my area, they would think it was 'country western' . . . and then using like a John Deere green to sell the whole thing?" one critic asked like he meant it to sting.

"I thought the John Deere green was a little darker," Ostroff said, but she took his point. On the other hand, "it's got you all talking," she pointed out.

"And, by the way, green is also a very happy color. It really represents fun, happy. It really stands for a lot of what the network is about. There's sort of this attitude about it," she prattled on.

"There's been quite a discussion what color green this is," noted one critic, speaking for all critics. "Is it lime green?"

"The really important thing is that we wanted to be able to use a color to help people be able to know who they were talking about," Ostroff responded. Finally, she conceded that it did have a hint of lime but mixed with darker green, yellow and white.

"It's a whole palette," she concluded, which seemed to settle the point.