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Maury Dexter

Director and producer · Died May 28, 2017, aged 89 · Paris, Arkansas, USA

Maury Dexter was an American film and television director and producer known for his work on low-budget films during the 1960s and his collaborations with television producer Michael Landon. He began his career as an actor, appearing in the Three Stooges short Uncivil War Birds (1946). Transitioning to directing and producing, Dexter worked on films such as The High Powered Rifle (1960) and Maryjane (1968). In television, he directed episodes of Little House on the Prairie and Highway to Heaven, contributing significantly to their success.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
June 12, 1927
Died
May 28, 2017 (aged 89)
From
Paris, Arkansas, USA
Works as
Director and producer
Titles
11 on MovieCove · 34 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 38 days to Oct 27Up 4% in 30 days

What are Maury Dexter's films like?

Across their 8 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Survival.

Genres

Action3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 13th percentile
: browse their Action movies
Drama3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 23rd percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Drama movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Morality
33%
Survival
21%
Society
17%
Self
15%
Bonds
14%
Justice3 titles, browse their movies with this themeSurvival2 titles, browse their movies with this themeRomantic love2 titles, browse their movies with this themeRevenge2 titles, browse their movies with this themeViolence2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 8 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Grounded: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their grounded movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 6 · Stylized 2 · Heightened 0

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 2 · Charged 4 · Intense 2

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 3 · Shifting 5 · Whiplash 0

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 5 · Some laughs 3 · Funny 0

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 3 · Even-paced 5 · Relentless 0

Casual: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their casual movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 6 · Engaged 2 · Full focus 0

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 8 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
5
Thrilling
4
Warm
2
Dread
2
Hopeful
2
Other
4

How their films linger

Bittersweet4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteWistful2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 1 with a twist

  • Happy3
  • Bittersweet3
  • Tragic2

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Maury Dexter's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 8 of their 11 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Prime Video (4).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Maury Dexter's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

34 credits, 11 with a MovieCove page.

  • Us (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1991)

    Assistant Director

  • Highway to Heaven(1984)

    Show 1 episode · Assistant Director

    Midcredits score: 51st percentile of all shows

  • The Loneliest Runner (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1976)

    Assistant Director

  • Betrayal (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1974)

    Assistant Director

  • Little House on the Prairie(1974)

    Show 21 episodes · Director · Assistant Director

    Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all shows

  • A Bullet for Pretty Boy(1970)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 13th percentile of all films

  • Hell's Belles(1969)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 27th percentile of all films

  • The Young Animals(1968)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 23rd percentile of all films

  • The Mini-Skirt Mob(1968)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 12th percentile of all films

  • Maryjane (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1968)

    Director · Producer · Story

  • Wild on the Beach(1965)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 2nd percentile of all films

  • The Naked Brigade (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1965)

    Director

  • Django the Honorable Killer(1965)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 2nd percentile of all films

  • Raiders from Beneath the Sea (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

    Director · Producer

  • Surf Party (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

    Director · Producer

  • The Young Swingers (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)

    Director · Producer

  • Harbor Lights (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)

    Director

  • Police Nurse (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)

    Director · Producer

  • The Yellow Canary (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)

    Producer

  • House of the Damned (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)

    Director

  • The Day Mars Invaded Earth(1962)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 12th percentile of all films

  • Young Guns of Texas (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)

    Director · Producer

  • The Firebrand (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)

    Director

  • Air Patrol (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)

    Director · Producer

  • Womanhunt (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)

    Director · Producer

  • The Purple Hills (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)

    Director

  • The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come(1961)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 30th percentile of all films

  • The High Powered Rifle (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1960)

    Director

  • Walk Tall (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1960)

    Director

  • The 3rd Voice (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1960)

    Producer

  • Frontier Gun (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1958)

    Associate Producer

  • A Life at Stake(1955)

    Dialogue Coach

    Midcredits score: 26th percentile of all films

  • I Led 3 Lives (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1953)

    Show 1 episode · as Cpl. George Wharton

  • One Exciting Week (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1946)

    as Jimmy Curtis

Career shape

A full career of 32 titles from 1946 to 1991.

Highest rated

The Day Mars Invaded Earth (1962)

Midcredits 12th

Most popular right now

The Young Animals (1968)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting2 of 32: 2 only acting, 0 with another roleDirecting22 of 32: 9 only directing, 13 with another role · typical Midcredits score12thWriting1 of 32: 0 only writing, 1 with another roleProducing15 of 32: 3 only producing, 12 with another roleOther crew6 of 32: 5 only other crew, 1 with another role

32 titles, 13 with more than one role — directing and producing overlap on 12 of them.

By decade

1940s1 · acting1950s3 · 1 acting · 2 crew1960s23 · crew1970s3 · crew1980s1 · crew1990s1 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

How do Maury Dexter's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 13th percentile, the median of all 9; across their 8 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 17th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

17thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Approval · how many liked their films

15thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Reach · how many have seen their films

28thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Midcredits score across 11 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up1
  • 50th to 74th1
  • 25th to 49th3
  • Below 25th6

Shape of the crowd

7 of their 11 titles are Mixed.

  • Universally Panned1
  • Crowd Pleaser2
  • Broadly Agreed1
  • Mixed7

Most divisive · director, producer

The Young Animals (1968)

67th percentile spread · 24% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · director

Little House on the Prairie (1974)

Midcredits 81st · 82% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 49/100 and the pacing 42/100 in their films, across 8 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Who does Maury Dexter work with?

People who share at least 2 of Maury Dexter's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Hank Tani shares the most, 4.

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers