Della Reese (born Delloreese Patricia Early, July 6, 1932, Detroit, Michigan) is an American actress and singer. She started her career in the 1950s as a gospel, pop and jazz singer, scoring a hit with her 1959 single "Don't You Know". She subsequently became an actress, best known as playing Tess, the leading role on the television show Touched by an Angel. In the late 1960s, she hosted her own talk show, Della, which ran for 297 performances. T...
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Della Reese (born Delloreese Patricia Early, July 6, 1932, Detroit, Michigan) is an American actress and singer. She started her career in the 1950s as a gospel, pop and jazz singer, scoring a hit with her 1959 single "Don't You Know". She subsequently became an actress, best known as playing Tess, the leading role on the television show Touched by an Angel. In the late 1960s, she hosted her own talk show, Della, which ran for 297 performances. Today, she is also an ordained New Thought minister in the Understanding Principles for Better Living Church in Los Angeles, California.
Della Reese was born in the summer of 1932 in Detroit. She is of African American and Native American (her mother is Cherokee) descent. At only six years old, she began singing in church. From this experience, she became an avid Gospel singer. At the age of thirteen, she was hired to sing with Mahalia Jackson's Gospel group. Afterwards, she formed her own gospel group called the Meditation Singers. However,...
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