Classic Movies and Things

Remembering Della Reese: July 6, 1931 - November 19, 2017 

Jazz/Gospel singer, actress, ordained minister

 Her lengthy career began as a singer in the 1940s, when she was hired to sing with Mahalia Jackson’s gospel group. Later, she would form her own gospel group, the Meditation Singers. Reese also garnered success as a jazz singer throughout the 1960s, influenced by artists such as Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday. 

Transitioning to acting in the 1970s, Reese hosted her own talk show series, Della, becoming the first black woman to host a talk show. She guest hosted The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson and appeared in many TV movies and miniseries. 

Reese’s most notable acting role came in 1994, where she played the sassy, wise, and no-nonsense angel, Tess, in the CBS drama, Touched By and Angel. The show ran for 9 years, during which she and co-star, Roma Downey, shared a strong chemistry both on an off-screen. 

In later years, Reese made fewer tv appearances as her health declined. In 2016, she was said to have undergone multiple surgeries and had developed diabetes due, in part, according to Reese, to her having neglected her health for years. Her last tv appearance was in the Hallmark series, Signed, Sealed, Delivered.

Della Reese passed away peacefully at her home in California, on November 19, 2017, at the age of 86.

“I could not have made it this far had there not been angels along the way.”