Credit Report Questions

Couple of questions here from Virginia:

I had a few financial problems in early 1998. Things got paid late, and 3 charge cards (1 MasterCard, 2 department store) got closed by the creditors for consistently late payments. I have paid these accounts off in full, and NEVER had anything go into collection. Everything now is either up-to-date or paid off.
Recently, I was denied credit. I requested a copy of my credit report, and noticed a couple things on there that I am curious about. So I figured I'd ask here.

How does a person go about getting things that are old off a credit report? I thought things were supposed to come off after 7 years or so.

How long does a CC closed by the creditor for late payments remain on the report? Is it possible to request it just show closed & paid?

How long will delinquent payments show up? I thought they just showed up for 12 months, but the denial letter said "Delinquent Payment History" even though I haven't been late since spring 1998.

What does a person do if there is a mistake on the report, ie. an account is still showing open even though it has been closed for almost 3 years & the company no longer exists? I've heard open accounts count against you when a company looks at your credit ratings.

Just trying to clean up my credit a little before I take the plunge & get married...

You've got a lot of questions. Take these and any others you have to [url="http://www.credit.org/."]http://www.credit.org/.[/url] This is a good resource for people like you.