Update:
I found a backup copy of the VM that is damaged from 01/06/2009, so I at least have a copy from there. It runs fine, but the data is of course from 1/6/09
So the new question is can I restore the damaged CURRENT vm with the needed files from the working copy from 1/6.
I tried moving the base .vmdk file(the one that was modified when I tried to "clone") back to the original damaged VM and now it starts fine. BUT - it has reverted to the most recent snapshot which is 11/4/2008, so that turns up actually OLDER than the copy from 1/6/09.
Can I somehow rebuild the damaged VM with the files from the copy on 1/6/2009 and have it start up into the most recent state, not te most recent snapshot?