Bound for Glory (1976)

Born in San Francisco, CA. Costume designer who entered American film in 1960 as an uncredited designer on SPARTACUS (1960). The "Theiss Theory of Titillation", which claims that "the degree to which a costume is considered sexy is directly proportional to how much it looks like it is about to fall off" is named after him. A key example of this idea in practice is the female android costume in the "Star Trek" (TV) episode "What are Little Girls Made Of?" in which the revealing top portion consists only of two crossing straps of material which connects in one piece to trousers. Theiss' other notable costume design credits include PRETTY MAIDS ALL IN A ROW and HAROLD MAUDE (both 1971), HICKEY & BOGGS (1972), BOUND FOR GLORY (1976), PETE'S DRAGON (1977), WHO'LL STOP THE RAIN, GOIN' SOUTH and THE CHILDREN OF SANCHEZ (all 1978), BUTCH AND SUNDANCE: THE EARLY DAYS (1979), HEART LIKE A WHEEL (1983), SUMMER'S END (1984) and THE MAN WITH ONE RED SHOE (1985). The balance of his work was for television series and made-for-TV movies.  Nominated for Costume Design 1976: BOUND FOR GLORY 1 nomination

"Star Trek" costume that embodies Theiss' 'Theory of Titillation'