your CPU does not support long mode. use 32bit distribution

say what???
64bit kernel in a 64bit distribution all sitting on a 64bit processor. That makes no sense.

It helps to read warnings:
You have configured this virtual machine as a 64-bit guest operating system. However, this host's CPU is not capable of running 64-bit virtual machines or this virtual machine has 64-bit support disabled.
For more detailed information, see http://www.vmware.com/info?id=152

still, the host of the VM is a 64bit intel processor.

VM has 64bit support disabled? how? and by whom or by what? Checked the BIOS settings, but there was nothing there. Old BIOS maybe?

Why do I care when I can just start up the VM from a different host?

Since the configuration of the VM guest lives on NFS I am not limited to a particular VM host. I just powered it on from a different 64bit host and it worked.

I am lucky to have VM's to work with. If this was a real machine with the abovementioned error message I would've been singing the weeping song. Then I would've upgraded the BIOS firmware to see what will happen.

Others who encountered this message during the installation, which is even more annoying.