She also starred in films beginning in 1975, including playing opposite Redd Foxx in Harlem Nights (1989), Martin Lawrence in A Thin Line Between Love and Hate (1996) and Elliot Gould in Expecting Mary (2010) among many.
Della, in middle age found her greatest fame as Tess, the wise angel in the long-running television drama “Touched by an Angel,” which debuted in 1994, Reese was mainly known as a singer, although she had costarred on other television series such as “Chico and the Man,” ”Charlie and Company” and “The Royal Family” again starring along side the late Redd Foxx.
In 1979, after taping a guest spot for The Tonight Show, she suffered a near-fatal brain aneurysm, but made a full recovery after two surgeries.
“Touched by an Angel” was a gamble for CBS from the start. The story of an apprentice angel (Roma 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.
Reese’s co-star on the series, Roma Downey, said in a statement that the actress died peacefully Sunday evening in her home in the Los Angeles area. No further details were included.