Petrizzo was once a vital force in fashioning the skyline of New York. Major contractors and developers lionized him for his acumen in shaping and delivering the steel frames for the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, Battery Park City, and numerous Manhattan skyscrapers. He grew up in East New York, Brooklyn, and dropped out of school when he was 16 to work on a private garbage collection crew. Later, he was a truck driver and manager for freight companies. In 1969, at age 36, he began a steel hauling business, but the company failed in 1974.