A 105-year-old singer whose past as a singer in Nazi Germany has dogged his reputation for decades is back in the spotlight after telling a Dutch television show Adolf Hitler was a"good guy." The Dutch-born Johan Heesters, who now has Austrian citizenship and is still popular and performing in Germany, was asked by a Dutch journalist what he thought of Hitler.

"A good guy, that's what he was," he said on the clip shown Thursday on the current affairs show"De Wereld Draait Door" ("The World Keeps Turning").

His wife, Simone Rethel, immediately corrected him, saying that Hitler was the worst criminal in the world.

"I know, doll," Heesters responded."But he was nice to me."

Rethel protested after the clip was aired, telling Dutch papers that he had been tricked into making the remarks, and that the program had cut out other parts of the interview where Heesters condemned the Nazi regime.

Heesters has made headlines twice in the past year for attempts to repair his reputation internationally, though he has remained popular in Germany throughout the war and after.