Men's Buster Brown Dress Shoes, 1920-1930

Richard Outcault, a talented comic illustrator with a keen eye for marketing, introduced Buster Brown in 1902. The character was an immediate hit. Outcault licensed Buster Brown's name and face to hundreds of companies. The St. Louis-based Brown Shoe Company, probably the best-known licensee, used the character to promote its shoes -- which came to be known as "Buster Browns" -- into the 1990s.