Kichel Theatre
109 S. 5th Street,
Jeannette,
PA
15644
109 S. 5th Street,
Jeannette,
PA
15644
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This was one of three theaters which once existed in Jeannette, Pennsylvania. It was the only one presumably not of the Harris chain.
It was remodeled in 1948 after which it was renamed the Kichel. It was previously named the Princess.
It serves today as the local American Legion hall.
Contributed by
David Stear
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Recent comments (view all 2 comments)
The name of this theater is currently misspelled. The spelling Kihchel is used throughout the various items about it in issues of Boxoffice. I’m sometimes skeptical of spellings Boxoffice gives, but in this case they agree with posts about the Kihchel family of Jeannette at a couple of genealogy sites, and a history of the town published in 2005.
The Kihchel Theatre was built by Mrs. Bessie Kihchel, widow of Princess Theatre owner Oliver A. Kihchel, and her sons Oliver D. and Burt R. Kihchel.
The April 8, 1950, issue of Boxoffice Magazine said that construction was about to begin on the new Kihchel Theatre. The item said that the Princess Theatre would be closed in May, and that all but its alley-side wall would be demolished, so the new theater was almost entirely new construction.
The September 2, 1950, issue of Boxoffice said that the Kihchel Theatre had opened on August 25. With 800 seats, the new theater was almost twice the size of the Princess. The new house was designed by architects Sorber & Horne.
Here’s an interesting bit of information about the Princess Theatre. The November 10, 1951, issue of Boxoffice ran an item about the death of Joseph Ranier, 52, projectionist at the Kihchel Theatre. He had previously been projectionist at the Princess Theatre. It said that Oliver Kihchel had hired Ranier at the age of 12 to work at the Princess. As Ranier was born in 1899, Kihchel must have been operating the Princess by 1911.