Green’s Dictionary of Slang

(orig. US) to be subservient, to toady, to be generally sycophantic.

[1577		Misogonus in Farmer (1906) IV i: Leave this brawing and wawling! for shame! gup! kiss arse! will you, none?].
1918		in E. Wilson Prelude (1967) 274: A kiss-ass attitude; you can kiss ass.
1936		M. Levin Old Bunch (1946) 517: He’d be disbarred before he’d kiss-ass to that two-faced mutt.
1945		in T. Shibutani Derelicts of Company K (1978) 235: They want to kiss-ass them guys.
1962		(con. 1940s) G. Mandel Wax Boom 43: You’ll kiss ass through proper channels [...] just like everybody else.
1982		(con. 1970) J.M. Del Vecchio 13th Valley (1983) 252: What’s he think they sent him over here for, ta kiss gook ass?
1989		P. Munro Sl. U. 119: kiss ass/kiss butt to try to impress, brownnose.
1998		Source Oct. 90: We ain’t takin’ no shit. We ain’t kissin’ no butt.
2012		C. Stella Rough Riders 51: One guy looking to kiss federal ass and that’s the end of finding James Singleton.