A definition of a “smartass” was given by Bronx-born comedian Joey Bishop in 1975:
 
“That’s someone who, blindfolded and naked, can sit on a plate of ice-cream and tell you what flavor it is.”
 
It’s not known when Bishop first told the joke, or if he coined it.
 
“A smart ass can sit on a ice cream cone and tell you what flavor it is, a wise ass can just tell you its going to be cold” was posted on Twitter on August 22, 2011.
 
   
Wikipedia: Joey Bishop
Joseph Abraham Gottlieb (February 3, 1918 – October 17, 2007), known professionally as Joey Bishop, was an American entertainer who appeared on television as early as 1948 and eventually starred in his own weekly comedy series playing a talk show host, then later hosted a late night talk show with Regis Philbin on ABC. He later became a member of the “Rat Pack” with Frank Sinatra, Peter Lawford, Sammy Davis, Jr., and Dean Martin.
             
27 January 1975, Philadelphia (PA) Daily News, “All’s Not Jake With Jack” by Larry Fields, pg. 21, col. 5:
He (Joey Bishop—ed.) also offered this wonderful definition of a smart-ass: “That’s someone who, blindfolded and naked, can sit on a plate of ice-cream and tell you what flavor it is.”
 
27 January 1981, Washington (DC) Post, “Glen (Campbell—ed.) & Tanya (Tucker—ed.): Ballad of a Country Couple” by Lynn Darling, pg. B9, col. 2:
“She’s a smart—-, all right,” Campbell says, watching her for a reaction. “She could sit on an ice cream cone and tell you what flavor it is.”
 
“I’d only sit on vanilla,” says Tucker.
   
Google Books
The Last Official Sex Maniacs Joke Book
By Larry Wilde
Toronto, ON: Bantam
1982
Pg. 13:
SMART ASS A guy who can sit on an ice cream cone and tell you what flavor it is
 
Twitter
UnlockPhone.Codes‏
@unlockmy
Confucius Say - A smart ass is someone who can sit on an ice cream cone and tell you what flavor it is
4:51 AM - 22 Mar 2009
 
Twitter
Red‏
@rednrolls
A smart ass can sit on a ice cream cone and tell you what flavor it is, a wise ass can just tell you its going to be cold.
11:54 PM - 22 Aug 2011
     
Google Books
Lucy and Linh
By Alice Pung
New York, NY: Alfred A. Knopf
2016
Pg. ?:
“What’s the definition of a smart-arse?” she’d ask.
 
“I dunno,” you’d reply.
 
“Someone who can sit on a tub of ice cream and tell you what flavor it is!”
 
28 August 2016, Des Moines (IA) Register, “Witty, wonderful obits made from the sausage of our lives” by Kyle Munson, pg. 4A, col. 1:
How do you define a smart-ass?
 
It’s someone who can sit on an ice cream cone and tell you what flavor it is.
 
That joke is courtesy of the late Dominic “Mickey” Sposeto, as relayed by his son, Dominic Jr.
   
Reddit—Jokes
What do you call someone who can sit on an ice cream cone and tell you what flavor it is?
submitted July 4, 2017 by AtG68
a smart ass
 
Twitter
ICE 🐝 🌭‏
@icestayfrosty
“You know what a smart ass really is? A smart ass can sit on an ice cream cone and tell you what flavor it is.” -old guy I met at work
9:15 AM - 8 Oct 2017
 
Twitter
Vikram‏
@vikramch
Replying to @ddevasper @katranj and 5 others
Seriously Dev (Hopefully that is your name), you are such a smart-ass I bet you could sit on a carton of ice cream and tell what flavor it is.
11:13 PM - 6 Dec 2017