Photo: Adam Wallcavage

person The Swing Man "Swing is folk music - an American-born art form. I don't think it's celebrated enough." Jacob Morris leans back on the bar in his gray 1940s suit and black and white wingtips. In the Five Spot's ruby-hued cocktail lounge, with scattered martini glasses and the faint croons of a wartime ballad, it's tempting to visualize Morris cast in a golden-era musical... Guy leaves L.A. for Philly to start company. Arrives October. Looks around town. Disappointed in swing scene. Approaches club owner (played by Five Spot's Philip Cohen). Dance sequence to "Don't Get Around Much Anymore." Begins teaching swing to two students. Dance sequence - "Pennsylvania 6-5000." Class becomes popular. "In the Mood." Club now a regular haunt of swing novices and aficionados. Big finale - "Sing Sing Sing." Soundtrack by Basie, Goodman and Miller. Costumes by Dior's New Look. A touch of dramatic embellishment. Jacob Morris, a former L.A. scenester and one of the Derby Dancers in the cult hit Swingers, moved here to help start an Internet advertising company, Real Media Inc. Once in Philadelphia, he almost immediately established himself as a swing fixture - both as performer and teacher. "Swing embodies what was best about American culture, society and song at its peak in the '40s." It's about dressing the part, remembering certain etiquette. "Women don't drink out of beer bottles. It's about dancing to every love song like Fred Astaire, having the grace of Gene Kelly." He leads me across the dance floor, spins me and my skirt twirls into a cloud of black chiffon. He holds me close, lets me go, catches me again in a cuddle lean. He dips me and with a lethally charismatic smile, whispers, "What woman isn't charmed by a man who can dance?" Morris teaches free swing classes every Sunday at the Five Spot. Classes begin 7:30 p.m., but arrive early. Space is limited. 5 Bank St., 574-0070. - Elva Ramirez