SHOWBUZZ

Maggie Rizer ushered in New York Fashion Week by helping 7th on Sixth chief Fern Mallis ring the bell at the New York Stock Exchange, but that was her sole appearance; the all-America model has decided to sit out the shows.

Rivals snipe that Rizer wasn't booked for the top runway displays and that rather than appear in a few mediocre shows, she decided to skip the whole thing. But her handlers insist that's just idle gossip, and that, in fact, her absence is due both to a better offer and having to deal with a crisis back home.

As The Post reported last week, Rizer's stepfather John Breen has landed in rehab after gambling away the family's savings.

"Maggie's an American model with a tremendous presence and following at New York Fashion Week," her agent, Ivan Bart at IMG tells us. "This particular week, however, she decided to take care of personal business... But she'll be all over the runways in Europe."

Meanwhile, friends say Breen blew more than just the $80,000 he lost on Quick Draw in one week, as initially reported; some estimate the true figure is closer to $1 million, representing quite a bit of Rizer's earnings.