Their house parties were notorious for the family's eccentric behaviour, for the obscure and outlandish games to which the guests were subjected, and for the heady atmosphere of flirtation - much of which was imported wholesale into Hay Fever.
Death, disorder, confusion and upheaval: 2016 has surpassed even the most outlandish video game in its disquieting depictions.
Even his mohican haircut isn't the most outlandish in the game.
His own sleight-of-hand cons include outlandish wins at poker games with gullible audience members, cards that hurtle through space like axes and decimate solid objects, and a flea circus whose acts include a micro-miniature version of the chariot race in "Ben Hur".
Homeland is in contention, alongside House of Cards, the enduring quality of Mad Men and the outlandish spectacle of HBO's Game of Thrones.
Culturally, they indulged in wine, games, fashion and outlandish behavior that seemed to have been designed expressly to upset the status quo.
Social psychologists note that in game situations, the more outlandish the bluff, the more likely it is that the bluff is taken seriously.
Soon after, Cain unveiled his outlandish 9-9-9 plan that changed the game: today, Perry trails Cain, 11%to25%5%.
The haunted office buildings, bland as they were, were a perfect stage to dredge up memories; to create an even scarier phantom by making me believe the outlandish things that happened in video games could happen in my own life.
Or not so outlandish, if we look back at the game one more time.
