The Beautiful Life of John Forbes Nash, Jr.

This story is also available on Kindle!

Nash at the Institute for Advanced Study in 2011. (Photo: Serge J-F. Levy)

“He was so incredibly himself” — Herta Newman

Mathematician John Forbes Nash, Jr (1928-2015). was born in Bluefield, West Virginia in 1928. He died in a car crash in New Jersey on the 23rd of May, 2015, on his way back home after receiving the renowned Abel Prize in Oslo a few days prior.

Popularized in the 2001 Academy Award winning movie A Beautiful Mind, Nash’s life story has since captured the fascination and imagination of the world. The goal of this article has been to celebrate that life. Here’s to John Forbes Nash, Jr., surely one of the most fascinating and brilliant people who has ever lived.

Early years (1928–45)

John Forbes Nash, Jr. was born on the 13th of June, 1928, in Bluefield, West Virginia. His father John Sr. was an electrical engineer for the Appalachian Electric Power Company. His mother, Margaret Virginia, had been a schoolteacher of Latin before she marr…