Norman Kivitz, 86, Phila. jeweler

Norman Kivitz, 86, of Center City, who owned and operated a wholesale jewelry store on Sansom Street for more than 50 years, died of complications from cancer Thursday at home.

Mr. Kivitz grew up in Kensington. When he was 8 and his brother Marvin was 3, his father, Morris, died. Their mother ran the family's shoe store in Kensington and the brothers helped out in the shop after school.

Mr. Kivitz graduated from Northeast High School. During World War II, he participated in a Navy officer-training program at Notre Dame University and then served in the Pacific theater and in the occupation of Japan.

After the war, Mr. Kivitz was standing in line at the unemployment office when he heard about a bookkeeper opening at the Jack Kellmer jewelry store in Philadelphia. He went to the library, read about accounting procedures, and got the job, his son Wayne said. Though he didn't last long as a bookkeeper, he stayed on as a salesman at Kellmer's until starting his own business, Norman Kivitz Co., in 1947. He initially sold items to small jewelry stores and gift shops and later manufactured a line of fine diamond jewelry.

For years, Mr. Kivitz worked seven days a week from Labor Day to Christmas Day, taking off only on Thanksgiving. After the seasonal shopping rush, his greatest pleasure was the annual New Year's vacation he took in Florida and later the Caribbean, with extended family, his son said.

Every winter, Mr. Kivitz and his wife, Joyce Mendelson Kivitz, traveled abroad. They had taken an African safari and visited China.

When he retired in 2002, Mr. Kivitz was the elder statesman of Sansom Street's Jewelers Row, his son said. Wayne Kivitz runs Norman Kivitz Co. with his brother, Morris.

Mr. Kivitz enjoyed Broadway shows, classical music, and Sinatra.

In addition to his sons, he is survived by a daughter, Leslie, and six grandchildren. His wife died in 2002.

The funeral will be at 11 a.m. today at Goldstein's Rosenberg's Raphael-Sacks Memorial Chapel, 6410 N. Broad St., Philadelphia. Burial will be in Roosevelt Memorial Park, Trevose.