Orson Swindle was born in 1937 in Thomasville, Georgia, and grew up in Camilla, Georgia. He enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve on May 10, 1957, and served until he received his commission in the Marine Corps Reserve on June 3, 1959. During this time he completed his Bachelor of Science Degree in Industrial Management from Georgia Tech. He entered active duty as an Admin Officer on August 25, 1959, and attended training at MCS Quantico, Virginia, from August 1959 to April 1960. His first assignment was as an Admin Officer with Marine Air Base Squadron 32 (MABS-32), Marine Aircraft Group 32 (MAG-32), at MCAS Beaufort, South Carolina, from May 1960 to January 1963, followed by Naval Flight School at NAS Pensacola, Florida, and NAS Corpus Christi, Texas, from February 1963 to May 1964. He then served as an instructor pilot at NAS Corpus Christi until August 1964, when he transferred to MABS-31, MAG-31, at MCAS Beaufort. Capt Swindle began flying F-8 Crusader fighters with Marine All-Weather Fighter Squadron 235 (VMF(AW)-235), MAG-31, at MCAS Beaufort in December 1964, and he deployed with his squadron to Da Nang AB, South Vietnam, in January 1966. He was shot down over North Vietnam on his 205th combat mission on November 11, 1966, and was immediately captured and taken as a Prisoner of War. After spending 2,305 days in captivity, LtCol Swindle was released during Operation Homecoming on March 4, 1973. After recuperating from his injuries, he flew TA-4 and A-4M Skyhawks at MCAS Cherry Point, North Carolina, from August 1973 to January 1974, and then completed his Master of Business Administration degree at Florida State University in 1975. His final assignment was as a Financial Manager on the Commanding General's staff at the Marine Logistics Base in Albany, Georgia, where he served from August 1975 until his retirement from the Marine Corps on November 11, 1979. After retiring from the Marine Corps, Orson served in the Reagan Administration from 1981 to 1989, which included service as Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development. He was national spokesperson for Ross Perot's presidential campaign in 1992, and became the first national leader of United We Stand America. In 1993, he helped form Empower America. Orson was the Republican candidate for Congress in Hawaii's 1st Congressional District in 1994 and 1996. He served as a Commissioner on the Federal Trade Commission from December 1997 to June 2005, and later served on John McCain's Presidential Campaign in 2008.

His 2nd Silver Star Citation reads:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity while interned as a Prisoner of War in North Vietnam from 7 July to 30 July 1969. During a concentrated effort by prison authorities to secure propaganda statements and petitions to United States Government officials, Lieutenant Colonel (then Captain) Swindle displayed extreme courage and adherence to the principles of the Code of Conduct. He was subjected to harsh and brutal treatment to such an extent that his ability to survive was doubtful, but he persisted in his refusal to provide propaganda statements. Throughout his extended period of torture and privation, Lieutenant Colonel Swindle outwitted his captors in their efforts to exploit him and obtain information for their nefarious use. By his steadfast devotion to his country and his continued resistance against extreme odds, Lieutenant Colonel Swindle upheld the highest traditions of the Marine Corps, the Naval Service, and the United States Armed Forces.