Like the
Comic Book Guy earlier on, this highly recognisable character from
the Simpsons currently goes without a name. He is a short, rotund and well presented middle aged man with a leery,
cherubic face and a small, neat
moustache. His most conspicuous trait is his unctuous greeting of "Yesssssssss!", an affliction he says came from previously suffering a
stroke.
Since 2000 this fellow has cameoed in a few episodes, appearing as a Dinner Theatre maitre d', a Costington department store clerk and a student at a yoga class.
Yet unlike the Comic Book Guy, he has no specific identity or personality beyond being the kind of customer service professional we encounter in everyday life, and only choose to remember if they have a distinctive or obnoxious mannerism. Which is a pity because they would otherwise be very good at their jobs, thanks to their unbridled and authentic enthusiasm.
Fansites refer to him as Yes Guy or Yes Man, for his highly conspicuous cheery greeting. Homer simply calls him "That Jerk that says 'yeeessss'". His greeting is spelt out in different ways on various websites, including:
Ayeeeesssss??
(my favourite)
Yeeeeeeeeees?
Eeeeeeeeeyess?
Nyessssssss??
There is also a Brazilian doppelganger who says sim with the same method of elocution.
The character is believed to be based on the actor Frank Nelson who shared the same appearance and used the same catchprase in different roles he played, most famously as Mr Ramsey, the Ricardos's next door neighbour, in I Love Lucy. He also played the same kind of smarmy wet character several times over in The Jack Benny Show and The Jetsons. No wonder he was a mystery for Simpsons fans aged under fifty.