[Ads-l] Quote Origin: There is only one difference between a madman and me ... (Attributed to Salvador Dali)

[ADSGarson O'Toole]

Two very different statements have been attributed to the famous
Spanish surrealist artist Salvador Dali:

(1) The only difference between me and a madman is that I am not a madman.
(2) There is only one difference between a madman and me. The madman
thinks he is sane. I know I am mad.

I received a request to explore this topic, and the Quote Investigator
article is located here:
https://quoteinvestigator.com/2025/05/25/not-madman/

The earliest match I located appeared in 1934 within a Springfield,
Massachusetts newspaper which reported on a visit Salvador Dali made
to Hartford, Connecticut. The paper stated that Dali spoke "Catalan
French", but the paper presented his words in English:

[ref] 1934 December 20, Springfield Daily News, Dali Is Seeking a
Place in Sun for Delirium, Quote Page 8, Column 6, Springfield,
Massachusetts. (Newspapers_com) [/ref]

[Begin excerpt]
He was, he explained, recreating dreams, so that one could see them in
the midst of every-day objects. The world that he is investigating is
the world Freud wrote of.

"The only difference between me and a madman," he remarked calmly, "is
that I am not a madman. I am able to distinguish between the dream and
the real world."
[End excerpt]

Salvador Dali died in 1989. The earliest match I found for the second
statement in the inquiry occurred in 1994. Thus, the evidence
supporting the second statement is weak.
Feedback welcome
Garson

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