Anthanasios Pakiotis was born in Poulithra, Arcadia, Greece on August 15, 1894, though he would eventually become part of the flood of turn-of-the-century Eastern European immigrants when his parents brought him to the United States in 1907.
After the rise of the Gold Dust Trio in the early 1920s, Packs astutely recognized the industry's emerging shift from legitimate contests towards worked results; and he began engaging in the practice of "trading" the world title with other promoters.
However, while Packs' group flourished with Londos selling out arenas across the nation, Mondt was eventually forced to turn to an aging and out of shape Ed Strangler Lewis as his primary talent.
By the time of Jack Curley's death in 1937, Tom Packs had already emerged as arguably the industry's most powerful promoter; and over the years, he subsequently helped groom a number of the sport's top wrestlers, including Bill Longson, Abe Coleman, Orville Brown, and Fred Blassie.
The top student of renowned "hooker" George Tragos, Thesz was just 20 years old when he first arrived in St. Louis, yet Packs immediately recognized his superstar potential; and he subsequently protected his investment by keeping him away from the region's most dangerous opponents while he honed his ring skills.
As a result, Thesz eventually became the youngest World Heavyweight Champion in history when he defeated Everett Marshall on December 29, 1937; and for the next quarter century, he would reign as the industry's undeniable premier grappler.
But after the Times merged with St. Louis Star, Muchnick rejected a management position when one of his close friends was bumped from the staff; and he instead agreed to join Packs' promotion handling the company's finances and public relations.