THE SHOE IN A TOPPER

With a tall silk hat added to his four feet 11 inches of height, Willie Shoemaker danced, sang and all but stopped the show at the Jockey Guild Ball in Los Angeles. Singing a parody of Tom Dooley, Shoemaker begged his aging (49) but still formidable rival, Jockey Johnny Longden, to retire. Sample: "Hang up your tack, John Longden, hang up your tack and quit./Hang up your tack, John Longden, pack up your bit and git."

PHOTO