[citation needed] Gordon's entry into acting came accidentally when he accompanied his sister to a tryout for a play.

For six years he appeared in the summer stock cast at Elitch Theatre (1924, 1925, 1926, 1927, 1928, & 1929.)

[6] His Broadway credits included The Shanghai Gesture (1928), The Shanghai Gesture (1926), Mismates (1925), Puppets (1925), The Saint (1924), Mr. Pitt (1924), The Crooked Square (1923), Thin Ice (1922), Lights Out (1922), and The Drums of Jeopardy (1922).

He often portrayed people of color, such as Surat Khan in The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936, opposite Errol Flynn), the Chinese smuggler Sam Kee in Lazy River (1934), and the Sultan of Padaya in Sophie Lang Goes West (1937).

On December 3, 1940, Gordon died at Hollywood Hospital in Los Angeles, California, after having his leg amputated the previous day because of a blood clot.