Yes, I can confirm that you had to be a shareholder as of 8/6, so this one is a lost cause =(
I was told by the Transfer Agent that in the case of a Cashout transaction, they are allowed to specify a "Payment Date" (which VVDL did). Apparently they treat the payment in the same manner as a dividend.
I don't agree with all of this, but this is the info that I was given. Looks like these are getting as risky as roundups.