Jan. 25, 1947: Al Capone Dies

Following his release from Alcatraz in 1939 at age 40, Al Capone was no longer the man he once was. Most believe it was the effects of untreated syphilis (contracted in his teens), but Capone family members insist it was mistreatment at Alcatraz that caused his mental undoing.

The "retired" Capone divided his time between the family home in Chicago (where his mother, Teresa, continued to reside) and his estate on Palm Island in Miami, FL. Over his remaining years, Capone's health and sanity continued to wane. He was often convinced that long-dead gangsters and the locked-up Bugs Moran were out to get him.

Capone suffered a stroke on January 21, 1947. Three days later, he contracted pneumonia. Finally, on January 25, at age 48, Capone suffered a fatal heart attack, surrounded by his grieving family. His devoted wife, Mae, collapsed at the scene.

Mae and their one child, Albert Francis (called "Sonny"), continued to live in Florida. Mae died at age 89 in 1986. Sonny, who was married three times and had four daughters with his first wife, eventually changed his last name to "Brown" ("Al Brown" was a frequent alias of his father). He died in 2004 at the age of 85, having lived a life the complete opposite of his infamous father.

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IN PRINT: Uncle Al Capone

Jan. 17, 1899: Al Capone Born

If there were ever just one name that was synonymous with crime, it would have to be Al Capone. No criminal has ever achieved more fame, or infamy, than the world famous gangster. And probably never will.

It's a common misconception that Alphonse Capone was born in Italy. In reality, Capone was born in Brooklyn, New York, on this day in 1899. His father, Gabriele was an educated barber from the village of Castellmarre di Stabia, just south of Naples. Gabriele came to America in 1894 with his pregnant wife, Teresina (later Teresa), and two young sons Vincenzo (later James, then Richard "Two-Gun" Hart, another whole story in itself) and Raffaele (later Ralph, or "Bottles"). Older brother Salvatore (later Frank) was born in 1895. Alphonse was the first Capone child born and conceived in the U.S. All told, the Capones had nine children -- seven boys and two girls.

The Capones were an average, religious, law-abiding Italian family. But after the family moved to the Park Slope section of Brooklyn, Al and his brothers met the mentor that would forever change the lives of the entire Capone family -- gangster Johnny Torrio.

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IN PRINT: Uncle Al Capone

Jan. 16, 1935: Ma and Fred Barker's Last Stand

Sometimes, reality doesn't match up with the legend, and other times reality is so much better. The former is the case of Kate "Ma" Barker, except for the way she went out, which is why the legend was created in the first place.

The legend version of "Ma Barker," which has been depicted in several movies and TV shows, is irresistible: the cigar-chomping, tommy-gun-toting matronly mastermind, head of a gang of her four devoted, criminal sons. In reality, Ma Barker's four sons, Herman, Lloyd, Arthur (aka "Doc"), and Fred, were true criminals, guilty of armed robbery, kidnapping, murder, and more as part of the Karpis-Barker Gang, but Ma was mostly just along for the ride, cooking and taking care of her boys. Mainly, she was part of their disguise -- a mother and her sons made them look more innocent.

After Doc was captured on Jan. 8 in Chicago, FBI agents located the rest of the gang based on a map of Ocklawaha, FL, he had left behind. Agents surrounded the house and a four-hour gun battle ensued (the longest in FBI history). The house was riddled with thousands of bullets. After the shooting finally stopped, agents went in and found both Fred and Ma dead. Concerned over the possible reaction from his agents killing a 60-year-old woman, Hoover concocted the popular image of "Ma Barker" known today. And thus, a legend was born, true or not.

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ON FILM: Ma Barker's Killer Brood

Jan. 13, 1939: Doc Barker's Escape from Alcatraz

Arthur R. "Doc" Barker picked the wrong day to escape from Alcatraz. Attempting an escape from the newly opened (1934) federal prison, situated in the frigid waters of San Francisco Bay, wasn't a good idea to begin with. But maybe Doc didn't have a calendar handy, because the day he and four others chose to escape was Friday, the 13th.

Thanks to budget shortfalls during the Depression, the cell bars in D block (the segregation unit for unruly prisoners) were of the old military prison style and, therefore, easier to cut through. That and a scheduling oversight that left D block unguarded for nearly 90 minutes, made it ideal for an escape attempt. Using a homemade tool called a "screw jack," Barker and his fellow inmates (Henry Young, Rufus McCain, Ty Martin, and Dale Stamphill) worked on the window bars for an hour each night.

After the 3:00 a.m. count, the five men crawled out of the window into the frigid night (they should have picked a better time of year, too) and made their way down the island's steep cliffs. They stripped naked except for their socks (really?) and used their clothes to tie some driftwood and a broken chair into a raft. Guards noticed that the men were missing before they could even get in the water and immediately began a search of the island. Young, Martin, and McCain were quickly surrounded and immediately gave up. Barker and Stamphill took to the water, hoping to swim for it, but the tide kept pushing them back to the island. They were intercepted by a search boat and Guards opened fire with a .45 and a Tommy gun. Stamphill was shot in the leg and Barker in the head. He died later that afternoon in the prison hospital, despite their best (albeit limited) efforts to save him.

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IN PRINT: Alcatraz Most Wanted: Profiles of the Most Famous Prisoners on the Rock