This term is used to describe someone who enjoys laying around watching TV instead of doing any sort of physical activity.
Californian Tom Iacino coined the term on July 15, 1976. At the time, he and his friend Robert Armstrong, a cartoonist, called themselves Boob Tubers because they enjoyed getting together to watch TV.
After hearing Iacino’s phrase, Armstrong started drawing cartoons featuring potatoes sitting on couches.