Happy Smile Man was first conceptualised on the image hosting website 'funnyjunk.com' now notoriously known for it's lawsuit against The Oatmeal. Happy Smile Man's first appearance was seen in a 2010 comic titled "New meme fail" by user 'A Pickle'. The comic was originally fairly well received, gaining over 900 thumbs and reaching the frontpage at the time.

It wasn't until late 2013 when several Funnyjunk users, namely kinesthetiac, nlggerplease, and fjisbest, posted images of a cropped version of the smiley face on multiple boards, gaining popularity through out its users. This new meme is still in its early days but is forecast to gain popularity throughout 2014.

sources:
http://www.funnyjunk.com/funny_pictures/211006/New/
http://www.funnyjunk.com/hating/162597#162597
http://www.funnyjunk.com/hating/162595#162595