| Della Reese is part of that exclusive society of actors who have created memorable, timeless television characters: in Reese's case, it is Touched By An Angel's Tess, the gruff but good-hearted supervisor angel who steers both her trainees and their human "assignments" back on the right path.
A well-known, ordained minister with an active congregation in Los Angeles, Reese's real-life perspective on the series often parallels that of the character she portrays. "The humans we touch have to churn their own butter," she states. "Tess, Monica (Roma Downey) and Andrew (John Dye) don't come to fix people in trouble. They come to teach them how to fix themselves. They provide assistance for people at a crossroads. If people see the hope, see that life is not all about oppression, depression and suppression, and have their eyes opened, they can become their own miracle."
For her work as Tess, Reese has received both Emmy Award and Golden Globe nominations. Also, for the past three years, she has been the recipient of the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Television Drama Series.
An actor, singer, talk show host and author, the multi-talented Reese first started singing in church in her hometown of Detroit when she was six years old. By the age of 13, she was touring with gospel great Mahalia Jackson; then, at 18, she formed the Meditation Singers and became the first performer to bring gospel music to the casinos of Las Vegas. Reese expanded her musical repertoire as a vocalist with the Erskine Hawkins Orchestra and began recording albums, with such hits as "Don't You Know" and "And That Reminds Me" in the 1950s. She appeared extensively as a guest on the top television variety series, logging more than 20 appearances in one year on The Ed Sullivan Show on the CBS Television Network. Reese was nominated for a Grammy Award as Best Female Soloist in Gospel Music in 1987.
Tapping into her other skills, she was host of a television talk show in 1969-1970, then began guest-starring in such series as Sanford and Son, The A-Team, Crazy Like a Fox and Picket Fences. She starred in the CBS Network series Charlie & Co. and The Royal Family. Reese's current projects include a new album based on her 27-city tour with her revue, "Some of My Best Friends Are the Blues," as well as song on the Touched By An Angel Soundtrack. Her best-selling autobiography, "Angels Along the Way," is published by G.P. Putnam's Sons. Reese also starred in the telefilms Emma's Wish, with Joanna Kerns, and The Secret Path, with Ossie Davis.
Reese lives in Los Angeles with her husband, producer Franklin Thomas Lett. Her birthday is July 6th.
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