Many readers thought that the comic version of Batson D. Belfry looked like a blend of Tip O’Neill and Ted Kennedy. I think he looks a lot more like O’Neill than Kennedy. Shoe was originally written by Jeff MacNelly, who won a Pulitzer Prize while an artist for the Richmond News Leader. After the Pulitzer, he worked for the Chicago Tribune. After JM's death, his widow, Susie MacNelly and his former Richmond colleague, Gary Brookins, continued to publish the comic strip.