Joseph Pavlikowski was born in Pennsylvania to Anna Sarada and Casmire Pavlikowski on March 25, 1928. He received his Bachelor of Arts from St. Bonaventure University and Doctor of Laws from the Washington (D.C.) College of Laws. He served in the United States Air Force from 1950 to 1954 as a fighter pilot in the Korean War. He lived in Las Vegas, Nevada and married Betty Cummings.

"Born Julius Charles Reizner in Taunton, Mass., in 1921, he fell in love with sports as a child. He placed his first bet with a bookie -- on the Boston Braves -- when he was 16."

"The family moved to Las Vegas in 1970. Reizner went to work at the now-defunct Churchill Downs Race and Sports Book."