Courage is very important. Like a muscle, it is strengthened by use.

In 1929 Gordon was starring in the title role of "Serena Blandish" when Ruth Gordon became pregnant by the show's producer Jed Harris. Both films were directed by George Cukor. In 1983 Gordon was awarded the Women in Film Crystal Award for outstanding women who through their endurance and the excellence of their work have helped to expand the role of women within the entertainment industry.

She is perhaps best known for film roles Ruth Gordon had while already in her 70s and 80s: Minnie Castevet Rosemary's overly solicitous neighbor in Rosemary's Baby the eccentric Maude in Harold and Maude and Ma Boggs the mother of Orville Boggs in the Clint Eastwood film Every Which Way but Loose. In addition to her acting career Gordon wrote numerous plays film scripts and books most notably co-writing the screenplay for the 1949 film Adam's Rib.