Escaping php content output for valid html

Hi there, I am just validating html generated by a php page. There is an error which comes up if ther is a dash in the content text. Those characters come out of a database. Is there a command in php which is escaping those characters for valid html output? Something like urlencode, but for text escaping all such signs? Here is the error msg: non SGML character number 150 This is the text: normal – text Thanx in advance, Merlin