Della Reese, who for the past five years has been the recipient of the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Television Drama Series for her role as Tess, the tough yet loving supervising angel in TOUCHED BY AN ANGEL, began singing in church in her native Detroit when she was 6 years old. As a teenager, she toured with gospel great Mahalia Jackson and, at 18, formed the Meditation Singers, becoming the first performer to take gospel music to the casinos of Las Vegas.

Reese expanded her musical repertoire as a vocalist with the Erskine Hawkins Orchestra and began making her own records. "Don't You Know" and "And That Reminds Me" were two of her biggest hits in the 1950s. She appeared on television as a guest on many variety shows and logged more than 20 appearances in one year on "The Ed Sullivan Show," on the CBS Television Network. She was nominated for a Grammy Award as Best Female Soloist in Gospel Music in 1987 and 1998.

Reese hosted a television talk show (1969-70) and has appeared in numerous television series, including "Sanford and Son," "The A-Team" and, on CBS, "Crazy Like a Fox" and "Picket Fences." She also starred in the CBS shows "Charlie & Co." and "The Royal Family." Reese's additional television credits include starring roles in the films "The Secret Path" and "Emma's Wish" and the mini-series "Mama Flora's Family," all on the Network. She was recently heard as the voice of Eema, one of the lead characters, in the Disney animated feature "Dinosaur" and starred in the television film "The Moving of Sophia Myles," to be broadcast this season on CBS. She has recorded an album based on her 27-city tour with her revue, "Some of My Best Friends Are the Blues," and published her autobiography, "Angels Along the Way".

Reese lives in Los Angeles and Salt Lake City with her husband, producer Franklin Thomas Lett. Her birth date is July 6.