After auditioning for, but not landing, several roles[10] (including for Alan Strang[5] in Equus on Broadway), Ostrum decided not to pursue it further.[10] After putting his short film career behind him, Ostrum declined reporters and interviews, preferring not to speak on the subject;[3] "I wanted people to judge me on who I was, not what I’d done".[11] For some time, Ostrum even lied and told people that his brother, and not he, had starred in the film.[3] It took Ostrum years after moving to Lowville before he told anybody there about his one-time stardom; even his wife Loretta did not know about his role until he warned her about it just before she met his mother.[6]