Della Reese, a noted jazz, gospel and pop singer, as well as the star of ’90s TV show Touched By an Angel, has died at the age of 86.
Reese’s Angel co-star, Roma Downey, released a statement on Monday about her passing on Sunday evening.
“On behalf of her husband, Franklin Lett, and all her friends and family, I share with you the news that our beloved Della Reese has passed away peacefully at her California home last evening surrounded by love. She was an incredible wife, mother, grandmother, friend, and pastor, as well as an award-winning actress and singer. Through her life and work she touched and inspired the lives of millions of people,” reads the statement.
“She was a mother to me and I had the privilege of working with her side by side for so many years on Touched By an Angel. I know heaven has a brand new angel this day. Della Reese will be forever in our hearts. Rest In Peace, sweet angel. We love you.”
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Before Touched by an Angel debuted in 1994, Reese was mainly known as a singer, although she had co-starred on Chico and the Man, Charlie and Company and The Royal Family and hosted her own talk show, Della.
She appeared on numerous shows such as Night Court, L.A. Law, and Designing Women, but wrote in her 1997 autobiography that she had difficulty being typecast until she landed her Touched By an Angel role.
Born Delloreese Patricia Early on July 6, 1931, in Detroit, Reese began singing at the young age of six at her local church, which began her storied career in music.
Reese formed her own group, the Meditation Singers, in the late 1940s, but soon enough, her jazz palate was whetted, and she sought to move onto bigger things. She signed a deal with Jubilee Records in 1953 and released six jazz albums under the label.
Her first international hit, And That Reminds Me, became a Top 20 hit in 1957. Shortly thereafter, Don’t You Know? became her signature song.
From there, she went on to guest-star on more than a dozen shows, including MacGyver, Night Court and The Young and the Restless.
In 1979, Reese almost died after suffering a brain aneurysm, after an appearance on the Tonight Show With Johnny Carson.
Over the next few years, she worked to become an ordained minister with the Christian New Thought branch of Unity. She founded her own church, called UP Church (Understanding Principles for Better Living).
Then came Tess in Angel, undoubtedly her biggest TV role.
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Angel was a gamble for CBS from the start. The story of an apprentice angel (Downey) and her supervisor (Reese) being sent to Earth to solve people’s problems appeared to have little chance in a TV world dominated by sitcoms and police dramas.
The first season brought mediocre ratings, but slowly the show’s audience grew until it became one of TV’s highest-rated dramas. It lasted until 2003.
Reese suffered from diabetes, and last appeared on TV in 2014 on dramedy Signed, Sealed, Delivered.
Reese’s friends and fans shared their condolences on Twitter.
https://twitter.com/EricXWest/status/932672661234290688
https://twitter.com/SylverAsh/status/932681955325362176
No cause of death or any details about her recent health have been provided. Reese leaves behind children James, Franklin, and Dominique, as well as her husband. One of Reese’s daughters, Deloreese, died from Cushing syndrome in 2002 at the age of 41.
— With files from the Associated Press
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