'Beautiful Mind' John Nash killed in car crash

Nobel prize-winning US mathematician John Nash, who inspired the film "A Beautiful Mind," was killed with his wife in New Jersey in a car crash, police said yesterday.

Nash, 86, and his 82-year-old wife Alicia were riding in a taxi on Saturday when the accident took place, police Sergeant Gregory Williams told AFP.

The Princeton University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) mathematician is best known for his contribution to game theory -- the study of decision-making -- which won him the Nobel economics prize in 1994.

His life story formed the basis of the Oscar-winning 2001 film "A Beautiful Mind" in which actor Russell Crowe played the genius, who struggled with mental illness.

"Stunned...my heart goes out to John & Alicia & family. An amazing partnership. Beautiful minds, beautiful hearts," Crowe said on Twitter.