TOUCHED BY AN ANGEL Star and Singer Della Reese Dies at 86

Della Reese, the star of TOUCHED BY AN ANGEL and a talented singer, passed away Sunday November 19 from years of struggling with diabetes. She was 86. Della Reese (full name Deloreese Patricia Early) was born in Detroit, Michigan in 1931. She feel in love with singing at a young age, singing in the gospel choir at her church. Her first professional gig came at the age of 13, when she landed a gig alongside gospel great Mahalia Jackson.

Reese formed an all-female gospel group, The Meditation Singers, while majoring in psychology at Wayne State University in Detroit. The group would go on to perform in nightclubs in Las Vegas.

Reese signed a contract with Jubilee Records in 1957 and, shortly after, landed a top 20 hit with "And That Reminds Me."

In 1959, the gospel and jazz singer scored a Billboard Hot 100 hit with "Don't You Know" off of her 1960's album "Della." The song earned her a Grammy nomination. After this track, Reese would sign with RCA Records.

Her albums continued to sell extremely well, from 1962's "The Classic Della" to the following year's "Waltz With Me, Della."

In the late 1960s, Della switched from singing to acting with her talk show/variety show venture DELLA. It was the first talk show/variety show to be hosted by a black woman. It ran for almost 200 episodes before it was cancelled in March 1970.

Shortly after, Reese became the first black woman to guest host THE TONIGHT SHOW. She then transitioned into sitcom and drama work, acting in shows such as CHICO AND THE MAN, THE MOD SQUAD, POLICE WOMAN and THE ROYAL FAMILY.

The role she is most well known for came in 1994, when she took on the role of the "supervising angel" in the CBS drama TOUCHED BY AN ANGEL. The "supervising angel" was one of three angels who helped the living get through their lives. In this role, Reese earned two Emmy nominations, a Golden Globe nomination and a Screen Actors Guild nomination. The show ran for nine seasons, ending in 2003.

Reese continued her TV work after TOUCHED BY AN ANGEL, appearing in shows such as THAT'S SO RAVEN and THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS.

She also founded a church in Los Angeles called Understanding Principles For Better Living.

She is survived by her husband of 34 years Franklin Lett. She was predeceased by her daughter Delloreese Daniels in 2002.

Below, Della Reese discusses her hit series TOUCHED BY AN ANGEL:

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