A deeply personal letter notorious gangster Al Capone wrote to his son while serving time in Alcatraz has sold for $62,500 at RR Auction.

It's undated but is thought to have been written in 1938, close to the end of Capone's sentence.

Al Capone tells his son how he's been keeping busy in prison

The letter shows a softer side to one of America's most ruthless crime bosses.

He writes of how much he misses his family and how he's been keeping busy playing checkers and learning the mandola.

It reads in part: "Well Sonny keep up your chin, and don't worry about your dear Dad, and when again you allowed a vacation, I want you and your dear Mother to come here together, as I sure would love to see you and Maggie…

"...please do not worry, as when you see me again, you sure will be surprised, in fact Junior I am 7 1/2 pounds under 200 Ha Ha, and in good shape, my routine here is Morning Yard, I mean the amusement Yard, Baseball, Horseshoes Courts, and Hand-ball courts, Checkers and Dominoes..."

Capone was paroled in 1939. He was suffering from paresis, a form of dementia brought on by the syphilis he'd contracted many years before.

His remaining years were a slow decline until his death in 1947.

An archive of letters and other documents from this time made $23,500 in 2013.

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