gerald watson

Della Reese was the First Black Woman to Host a Talk Show known as "Della!" in 1969. Shortly after, In 1970, she became the first black woman to guest host The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. —Delloreese Patricia Early (July 6, 1931 – November 19, 2017), known professionally as Della Reese, was an American jazz and gospel singer, actress, and ordained minister whose career spanned seven decades. Della Reese was born Delloreese Patricia Early, in the historic Black Bottom neighborhood of Detroit, Michigan. In 1944, she began her career directing the young people's choir, after she had nurtured acting plus her obvious musical talent. She was often chosen, on radio, as a regular singer. At the age of 13, she was hired to sing with Mahalia Jackson's gospel group. Reese entered Detroit's Cass Technical High School (where she attended the same year as Edna Rae Gillooly, later known as Ellen Burstyn). She also continued with her touring with Jackson. With higher grades, she became in 1947 the first in her family to graduate from high school, aged 15. After this she formed her own gospel group, the Meditation Singers. She began her long career as a singer, scoring a hit with her 1959 single "Don't You Know?". In the late 1960s she hosted her own talk show, Della, which ran for 197 episodes. In 1970, Reese became the first black woman to guest host The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. She appeared in several TV movies and miniseries, was a regular on Chico and the Man and played the mother of B. A. Baracus in The A-Team episode "Lease with an Option to Die". In 1991, she starred opposite her old friend Redd Foxx in his final sitcom, The Royal Family, but his death halted production of the series for several months. Reese also did voice-over for the late 1980s Hanna-Barbera animated series A Pup Named Scooby-Doo on ABC. Reese achieved continued success in the religious television drama Touched by an Angel (1994–2003), in which she played the leading role of Tess. From 1975 she also starred in films, playing opposite Redd Foxx in Harlem Nights (1989), Martin Lawrence in A Thin Line Between Love and Hate (1996) and Elliott Gould in Expecting Mary (2010). AWARDS ▪1994: Hollywood Walk of Fame: 7060 Hollywood Boulevard—Television ▪1996: Image Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series—Touched by an Angel ▪1997: Image Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series—Touched by an Angel ▪1998: Image Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series—Touched by an Angel ▪1999: Image Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series—Touched by an Angel ▪2000: Image Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series—Touched by an Angel ▪2001: Image Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series—Touched by an Angel ▪2002: Image Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series—Touched by an Angel ▪2015: Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars ▪2017: Rhythm & Blues Music Hall of Fame Award