Income Tax Expense Attributable to Income from Continuing Operations (Detail)	12 Months Ended
	Oct. 31, 2011	Oct. 31, 2010	Oct. 31, 2009
Reconciliation of Statutory Federal Tax Rate [Line Items]
Statutory rate	35.00%	35.00%	35.00%
State and local income taxes, net of federal tax benefit	6.30%	6.50%	6.50%
Federal and state tax credits	(5.10%)	(4.60%)	(5.80%)
Impact of change in state tax rate	(0.40%)	(0.10%)	(3.70%)
Tax liabilities no longer required	(4.00%)	(0.50%)	(0.40%)
Nondeductible expenses and other, net	3.20%	2.30%	2.90%
Effective Income Tax Rate, Continuing Operations, Total	35.00%	38.60%	34.50%