[4] He was an athlete at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), being named an all-conference catcher and All-American selection in 1942.

[9][10] In December 1943, he joined the Army and was assigned to E "Easy" Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment in the 101st Airborne Division.

[11] During Operation Overlord, Compton participated in Easy Company's action at Brécourt Manor under the leadership of Richard Winters.

Compton and his fellow paratroopers assaulted a German battery of four 105 mm howitzers firing on Utah Beach, disabling the guns and routing the enemy.

[14] Later in 1944, Compton was shot through the buttocks while participating in Operation Market Garden,[15] the Allies' ill-fated attempt to seize a number of bridges in the Netherlands and cross the Rhine River into Nazi Germany.

After a partial recovery, he returned to Easy Company in time for the siege in the frozen Ardennes; the Battle of the Bulge.

Stephen E. Ambrose concluded that Compton had been "unnerved" by witnessing two of his closest friends, Joe Toye and William Guarnere, badly wounded by German artillery.

In real life, while I was hollering for the medic, trying to figure out what to do, I remember two distinct thoughts: How are we going to help the wounded guys?...Maybe this is the time the Germans are really going to get us all.

[18] In 1947, he joined the Air Force Reserve, serving in the Office of Special Investigations and eventually Judge Advocate General Corps before retiring as a lieutenant colonel in 1970.

[19] In 1946, Compton returned to UCLA to complete his degree; he turned down an offer to play minor league baseball, choosing instead to concentrate on his continued public service aspirations.