Recently a friend gave me several old Intel 40 pin D87C51FC-1 microcontrollers. (Datasheet: D87C51FC-1 Datasheet, PDF - Alldatasheet ). I was wondering If I could burn the Arduino bootloader on to it and program it. Anyone have any advice on how to do this? Would it be the same as burning a regular ATMEGA328 (RX TX pins to FTDI cable etc...) I realize its like 30 years old, still thought I might be able to make some use out of them.
no, its totally different architectures
too bad. Can I still use it to some capacity (I have many of them laying around. Maybe a good opportunity to learn about microcontrollers in a different way)? In brief, what do you mean by "different architectures"?
it means they are a totally different design, and handle data in totally different ways, and may even use different methods, its like the difference between a internal combustion engine and a rocket.
micahc:
too bad. Can I still use it to some capacity (I have many of them laying around. Maybe a good opportunity to learn about microcontrollers in a different way)? In brief, what do you mean by "different architectures"?
Older chips like this were either EPROM or PROM. If EPROM (meaning there is a glass window on the chip) they can be reused, otherwise they can only be programmed once. Assuming that they are reusable, then you will need a programmer for that specific device (These used to be fairly expensive but you might find something cheap on EBAY). Then you will either need to learn the specific assembly language for that device or find a high level compiler that can produce code for that specific device...
To summarize, this is a fair bit of work to have any chance to get any use what-so-ever at of those chips. And since you can't replace them, once they are gone, all of that work/money will be gone.
Oh, and to erase the chip (to burn a new program) you need to expose the chip to Ultraviolet light. They used to make lights for just this purpose... Search EBAY.
You could possibly set it up to execute program code from external memory (according to the datasheet anyway, if the lock bits aren't set). But you'd still need an EEPROM programmer. There are plenty of MCS-51 development tools out there you might be able to use, but getting a useable development board built around it might end up being a lot more hassle than it's worth. Don't let that put you off, though... research it further by all means, just be prepared for the possibility of putting a lot of hours in for zero return. It happens with many projects (including many of mine!) 
8751 was a variant of the 8051. had some onboard eprom. need an eprom programmer, uv light and some 8051 development tools. might even be able to find a basic interpreter.
will need some external ram.
might even be able to find a basic interpreter.
probably, there's a few of them for the family as long as the 8751 doesn't stray too far... I know cause I am slowly gathering parts for a 8032 basic computer (which is a 8051 with no on board rom, or so they say, its probably in there and broken heh)