John Forbes Nash, Jr., the inspiration behind 'A Beautiful Mind' and his wife Alicia died in a car accident, May 22, CNN reports.
The driver of the taxi that the 86-year-old mathematician and his wife were on lost control and crashed into a guard rail. They were pronounced dead at the time of the accident.
The taxi driver, Tarek Girgis, suffered injuries and was rushed to the Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital.
The 1994 Nobel Prize winner suffered from paranoid schizophrenia. Formerly refusing to take medications, he described his "mental disturbances" as "an unfavorable course with history in the sense that people never really recovered to what you can call mentally well. They become what are called consumers of mental health organizations. They are always taking some sort of a pill," CNN adds.
His wife, Alicia Larde, who was a student in the university where Nash taught mathematics, took him in when he was struggling in the 1970s. He survived because of the presence of his wife.
Despite his struggles, Nash has made a name for himself by creating major mathematical theories and equations. Among his contributions were in the areas of games, geometry, topology and equilibrium.
This brilliance has earned him the 1994 Nobel Prize in Economics and just recently, the prestigious Able Prize in Oslo.
Known as one of the greatest mathematicians of the 20th century, John Nash's life was an inspiration to his biographer, Sylvia Nasar. She wrote the book, "A Beautiful Mind" in 1998, which was later revived into the 2001 Oscar-winning biopic. The film starred Russel Crowe and Jennifer Connelly.
"RIP Brilliant #NobelPrize winning John Nash & and his remarkable wife Alicia. It was an honor telling part of their story #ABeautifulMind," tweeted film director Ron Howard, upon knowing the math legend's death.
Russell Crowe, who played Nash's character in the film also tweeted, "Stunned...my heart goes out to John & Alicia & family. An amazing partnership. Beautiful minds, beautiful hearts."
The members in the academia also expressed their sadness on their loss of a brilliant, beautiful mind.
