I'm assuming you want to make sure it runs before you do anything else. For that, changing the motor oil and getting fresh gas into it should suffice. You'll need a fresh battery and should clean battery cables.

Once the engine is running, you will see any obvious areas to fix like leaky gaskets. I wouldn't do that before and I wouldn't change anything that doesn't leak until you have done every other thing.

Once you are sure the car will start, check out the brakes. If the pedal stays off the floor, they probably work enough for you to do a "maiden voyage" around the block. Applying the brakes every so often will help clean the surfaces. Once you get the car to operating temperature you'll start to notice other things. Take care of them next.

After you start to feel pretty confident that the car will start when you get into it and motivate you for short distances, it's time for safety. I've seen 50-year-old cars with original brake hoses but I'd say flush the brake system with new brake fluid, then rebuild the wheel cylinders and check out the drums and shoes/pads. Replace the brake hoses.

Then get under the hood and replace every hose and belt. It's just common sense, they can leave you stranded as you venture farther and farther from home. You may want to rebuild the carb and clean out the gas tank.

Do not bring out the chainfall or cherry picker and start pulling the engine or disassembling the transmission. This is the best way to assure the car will never see the road again.

Please note that you have not bought expensive things like tires or ignition components yet. You have not done any major disassembly and the car is able to be driven, if only to the grocery store and back. Proceed little by little and only buy parts when you know you are going to install them today or tomorrow. No looking down the road. About this time you'll replace the windshield wipers.

As you are moving around the car you may notice that the interior needs help. Plastics become brittle and cloth rips, headliners sag. Take care of them with chemicals or seatcovers, even an old blanket can prevent the disintegration of the seat more than it is already. It's easier to prevent damage than it is to fix it. This is a lesson it took me years and years to learn.

Changing ATF and filter comes after you've put a few hundred miles on the car and can be sure there isn't something major that's going to stick the car in the garage. And of all the lubricants/fluids in the car, the differential gets changed last, after everything else is done.

There will be those who start you out by replacing every gasket and seal, rodding out the radiator, etc. Don't listen to them. Do the things that can be accomplished easily first so you can get a better idea of the car before you drop big $$$ into it.

Good Luck!

R.