http://www.perlmonks.org?node_id=46222


in reply to Stripping funny characters

The amusingly-named Demoronizer is a Perl program that cleans up yucky stuff like that.

I haven't looked at it, but I've heard good things about it. Of course, it claims to use Perl 4 features, so perhaps you'll be the one to bring it into the 21st century. (By the time the 21st century rolls around, that is.)